


A million little pieces

by birman



Category: VIXX
Genre: M/M, vixx - au, vixx - supernatural
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-03
Updated: 2019-08-03
Packaged: 2020-07-30 05:15:10
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 23,107
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20091853
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/birman/pseuds/birman
Summary: please note: this is an old fic I had uploaded here on ao3 some time ago under the pseud myridiel, and then taken down once I had basically left the vixx/kpop fandom and was not longer interested in keeping them up.I’m re-uploading all my vixx fics because… I don’t know, someone might feel like reading them I guess? lol, anyway have fun if you do ;)





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> please note: this is an old fic I had uploaded here on ao3 some time ago under the pseud myridiel, and then taken down once I had basically left the vixx/kpop fandom and was not longer interested in keeping them up.   
I’m re-uploading all my vixx fics because… I don’t know, someone might feel like reading them I guess? lol, anyway have fun if you do ;)

Jaehwan looked up at the cloudy sky and pulled the hood over his head.  
It was a full moon, and people tended to stay inside because, they said, strange things happened on full moon nights. Weird and dangerous creatures walked the earth.

Jaehwan didn’t care. Full moon nights were just like any other night for him, and the clouds helped him go unnoticed.   
Full moon nights didn’t hinder his… ‘line of work’ at all.  
The only drawback was that fewer people were caught outside on full moon nights. But merchants didn’t stop for silly superstitions.  
Jaehwan smiled and thanked whatever gods merchants prayed to before setting out for the forest path.

It really looked like no-one was around tonight though, and even the forest was unusually silent.  
Jaehwan shivered and wrapped his cloak tighter around him, pressing on through the trees, keeping the path on his right.  
He stopped when he saw a dim light up ahead, where the ruins of an old house were. He smiled and walked silently towards his possible prey.

When he was close enough, he saw that someone was indeed camped by the ruins. They had lit a fire that now was reduced to mere glowing embers and would go out soon.  
Jaehwan sneaked closer to the sleeping form of the traveller lying on the ground by the fire.  
He wanted to laugh: people were seriously stupid if they thought they could spend the night out in the open so peacefully, not worried about wild beasts or brigands.   
Not worried about people like Jaehwan.

It didn’t take much for Jaehwan’s hopeful mood to change into disappointment: this man - boy, Jaehwan saw once he could take a good look at him, was no merchant.  
He looked no older than him, and he definitely had nothing valuable, if his poor belongings were any sign.

Jaehwan stared at the traveller, playing with his knife and thinking about what to do, it seemed just a waste of time to leave empty-handed. He was good-looking, Jaehwan thought, maybe he could tie him up and sell him to one of the brothels of the city at the other side of the forest…

It all happened extremely fast: one moment Jaehwan was standing, still immersed in his thoughts, the next he was lying with his back to the ground, looking up at the not-so-asleep-anymore boy.  
He tried to pull himself up, but a boot pressed to his chest kept him in place.  
“Who are you? What do you want?” a deep voice asked.

Jaehwan looked for his knife, but it had fallen out of his reach.   
The pressure of the boot on his chest increased and Jaehwan groaned in pain. He looked back at the stranger: he was clearly waiting for an answer, his eyes hard and unreadable.

“I have no gold, as you can clearly see. Why didn’t you leave?”  
“You’re handsome, you’d make me good money in the pleasure district of the city.” Jaehwan blurted out.  
He quickly shut his mouth, pressing his lips together. What the… he hadn’t meant to say anything at all, why did he do it?

The stranger’s eyes flashed red for a moment, and Jaehwan fought the urge to whine: “What… you… demon…”  
The traveller grabbed Jaehwan’s shirt and pulled him up quite effortlessly, dragging him in a corner against the remains of a wall.  
“Do you really think I’d be out here sleeping if I was a demon?” he snorted. He ignored Jaehwan’s complaints as he ripped a strip of cloth from his cloak and tied his wrists behind his back, and then to a charred beam that was sticking from the ruins.

Jaehwan watched as the other man lay back on the ground and pulled his thin blanket up to his chin: “You’d better not try anything funny.”  
As soon as he closed his eyes though, Jaehwan tried to break free, but the knots were too tight and he quickly gave up.  
He began staring angrily at the sleeping boy, muttering curses under his breath. His anger soon died out, because the more he looked at him, the more he found him attractive.

Yes, he thought more out of stubborn spite than actual resentment, he would fetch me quite a high price at the Blooming Rose, or maybe at the Pearl. They only deal with the best merchandise.  
The stranger turned and the blanket slid off his body, pooling at his waist. He was fully clothed, but his shirt was pulled tight over his chest because of how he moved in his sleep, and Jaehwan couldn’t take his eyes off him.  
Well, he went on thinking, licking his lips, I’d be justified if I tried him before giving him over, right?

When he looked back to the stranger’s face though, he was surprised to see he had his eyes open. And he was looking at him with a slight grin on his face.  
His eyes looked red once again for an instant, but Jaehwan couldn’t be sure because of the dying fire reflecting on his face.

“You want me.” the stranger said. Jaehwan snorted, but said nothing.   
The boy sat up and his grin widened: “I don’t need to read your mind, if that’s what you’re thinking. I can see it clearly on your face.”  
He stood and walked to where Jaehwan was sitting, crouching down in front of him: “What were you imagining?” he traced Jaehwan’s jaw with the tip of his finger, slowly, from his ear to his chin.  
“Me, naked, writhing underneath you?” the finger moved down Jaehwan’s neck, over his adam’s apple, dipping gently inside his shirt.  
“Or maybe me kneeling between your legs?” the stranger was now trailing his hand over Jaehwan’s shirt, going even lower.

Jaehwan swallowed, eyes glued on the boy’s face. He let out a soft moan when he felt a warm hand palm his half-hard cock through his pants.  
“Untie me.” he croaked.  
“Why,” the stranger purred, pressing his hand more firmly against Jaehwan’s crotch and massaging his member, “so you can take off my clothes and pin me to the ground as you have me?”

Jaehwan’s cock was now fully hard, and he panted softly, bucking his hips against the stranger’s hand.  
“Maybe take me from behind while I’m on my hands and knees?” he whispered in Jaehwan’s ear as he squeezed.

With a grunt, Jaehwan jerked his hips one more time and came in his pants.  
The traveller laughed and stood, going back to his makeshift bed.  
“Hey! Are you going to leave me like this?” Jaehwan complained, pulling at the ties holding him.  
“You wanted to rob me and sell me as a whore, you’re lucky I didn’t do anything worse. Now let me sleep or I’ll gag you.”

Jaehwan grumbled and kicked in the stranger’s direction a few times before calming down and doing his best to ignore the sticky mess in his pants.  
Despite his efforts, he must have fallen asleep sometime during the night, because when he opened his eyes next, the sky was getting bright.  
And the stranger was leaning against him, warm breath against his neck, arms around his shoulders… hugging him? It took Jaehwan’s a moment to finally understand.

“I’ve loosened your ties. You should be able to free yourself in a while.” He smiled, “Of course, I’ll be far away by then.”  
He patted Jaehwan’s cheek lightly: “Too bad we met like this. We could have had some fun together instead.”  
He stood and picked up his bag, waving at Jaehwan as he disappeared into the forest.

Jaehwan wriggled, pulling once again at the ties that were definitely looser this time.  
He squinted in the direction the traveller walked off to, finally able to work on the knots holding his wrists.  
“Oh, you can bet we’ll meet again. The Blooming Rose would definitely buy someone like you. You and your damn dimples. Just wait till I get my hands on you…”


	2. Chapter 2

Jaehwan stepped into the tavern and sat down at one of the two empty tables.   
He ordered some stew and mead, and when the girl brought his food over, he asked her if she had seen someone that looked like the stranger he had been chasing for almost a week now.

She hadn’t, but when she went back to her duties, another woman approached him: “I think I’ve seen the man you’re looking for.”  
Jaehwan looked up at her, expectantly, but she had stopped talking. He sighed and pushed his untouched mug of mead towards her.

“Tall, broad shoulders, dimples when he smiles, very handsome.” she said after she emptied half of the mug. Jaehwan nodded at the description.  
“I saw him this morning. He refused my services, and asked me where the general store was. He said he needed to stock on supplies.”  
“In what part of the city did you see him?” Jaehwan asked, offering her his meal and ordering another mug of mead.  
“The northern border. I don’t think he went very far though.”  
“Why not?”  
“He looked a bit feverish.” she shrugged and digged into the stew.

Jaehwan thanked her and left the tavern. This was the closest he’d been to his prey, and he was damned if he was going to let him slip away.  
He bought more food and a few other supplies, and left immediately despite the shopkeeper’s warnings about the woods surrounding the city.

It was late afternoon: he had two, three hours of light at most, and Jaehwan wanted to catch up to the other man as much as possible before nightfall.  
He noticed that the stranger was travelling north, and that helped in his hunt even with a few hit-and-miss calls. He supposed this was his direction even now.

Jaehwan had been walking in the woods for about two hours when the sun began to set.   
If the man was indeed feverish, he would need to set up camp soon, he thought.  
His suppositions turned out to be true because, half an hour later, he saw a faint light up ahead and on his left. The shopkeeper told him no-one usually ventured in the woods at night because of wild beasts and bandits, so that must have been him.

Jaehwan took extra care to silence his steps, he didn’t want to risk an encore of what happened a week before.  
As he got nearer though, he saw shadows move between the trees in front of him and froze. Bandits.  
He followed them: no way in hell he’d let them steal his prey.

The fire was still burning brightly, and Jaehwan could see the silhouette of a man sitting by it as he approached the small camp.  
He hid behind a tree and looked around, trying to spot the other bandits, the light of the fire making it difficult to see them in the darkness.

Knife in hand, Jaehwan watched closely as the bandits walked around _his_ traveller to ambush him from behind, expecting him to sense them and fight back, just like it happened with him.  
When nothing happened and the bandits got dangerously close, Jaehwan moved forward, fast.

He had counted three shadows. He quickly dispatched the first, taking him by surprise and leaving him on the ground before reaching the second bandit and slitting his throat.  
The third was already upon the man sitting by the fire.  
“Watch out!” Jaehwan cried. The bandit froze and swore, turning to look at him, and the stranger jumped to his feet, trying to understand what was going on.  
Way too slow, Jaehwan noticed.

The brigand waited, clearly expecting his little gang to back him up. When that didn’t happen, and he saw himself outnumbered, he grunted and fled.  
“What… what’s going on?” the stranger asked, bewildered.  
Jaehwan walked over and began throwing dirt on the fire, putting it out: “We need to move, he might be back.”  
“How did you find me?” the traveller asked.  
Jaehwan picked up the stranger’s bag from the ground and threw it in his arms: “Later, alright?”

The two moved swiftly through the trees, even if not as fast as Jaehwan wished. The other man was panting, his movements slightly groggy.  
They finally reached what in the dark looked like a rocky slope covered in moss and undergrowth. They carefully walked along it till they found an indent, some kind of small cave.  
“Lie down and get some sleep, I’ll keep guard.”  
“Like hell I’m going to trust you.”

Jaehwan sighed loudly: “Listen, I’m not going to do anything. You’re sick, you won’t be of any use like this.”  
The stranger didn’t reply, but Jaehwan heard him spread his blanket on the ground and lie down.  
“Thank you, I guess.”  
Jaehwan grunted.  
“My name’s Hongbin, by the way.” the stranger added quietly.  
“...Jaehwan. Now shut up and sleep.”

When the first ray of sun shone through the trees, Jaehwan stood, stretching and massaging his sore back and legs.  
He looked at Hongbin who was still sleeping, and began to wander through the forest.  
He was looking for a particular kind of tree. He saw it on his way to the city the day before, so he supposed it grew in this forest as well.  
And… yes, there it was. Jaehwan took out his knife and peeled a few strips out of the bark before going back to their camp.

Hongbin was awake when he got back, and he had a look of surprise on his face when he saw him.  
“What, you thought I left?” Jaehwan handed him the pieces of bark, “Chew on this, it’ll help with your fever.”  
Hongbin eyed the bark warily, sniffed it and then slowly chewed it, making a face.

“Why are you following me? How did you find me?” he asked as he took the water bag that Jaehwan handed him.  
“I have to sell you to a brothel, remember? It wasn’t that hard to find you, your tracks were everywhere. And I’m good at what I do.”  
Hongbin snorted: “And you’re nursing me to health instead of taking advantage while I’m sick?”  
“They wouldn’t pay as much.” Jaehwan shrugged.

Just like a week before, Hongbin’s eyes flashed red for a moment: “I want the truth.”  
“That was the truth. Also, you intrigue me. I wanna know more about you.”  
As soon as he said that, Jaehwan spluttered: “Fuck, I wasn’t supposed to say that last bit. Stop… just stop whatever you’re doing!”

Hongbin laughed, and Jaehwan shot him a murderous look.  
“Sorry, sorry. I’ve got a deal for you: I need to reach someplace in the north, I’m looking for someone. You’re skilled, help me. In return, when we’re done, you can sell me to that brothel.”  
This time it was Jaehwan’s turn to look at Hongbin suspiciously: “And you’d give yourself up to me so easily? Where’s the catch?”  
“No catch.” Hongbin looked through his bag and fished out some dried meat. He kept some for himself and offered some to Jaehwan, who took it and sat down.

“You were partly right last time. There’s demon blood in me. I’ve never met my father, he left us when my mother was expecting me.”  
“And you’re looking for him now? Why? Do you want to kill him?”  
“What? No, no. I’ve got… things to ask him.”  
Jaehwan chewed on his meat and looked at him, immersed in his thoughts, for a few minutes.  
“Alright. I’ll go with you. But” he added when he saw Hongbin smile, “no more tricking me with your eyes.”

Seeing that Hongbin felt better, they resumed their journey, also in case those bandits hadn’t completely given up on them.  
“So, can you do magic?” Jaehwan asked later in the day when they stopped to rest and eat.  
Hongbin smiled and shook his head: “No. I can make people do or tell me what I want, stuff like this. I guess my demon part is not that strong after all.”  
“Do you know where you’re headed?”  
“There are rumours of a small valley hidden beyond the northern mountain. Mother said father could very well be there.”  
“You’re not sure then.”  
Hongbin shook his head and said nothing, eyes downcast.  
Jaehwan sighed: “Don’t worry, we’ll find this valley. And if your old man isn’t there, we’ll look somewhere else.”  
“What?” he added, noticing Hongbin raising his eyebrows in surprise, “We made a deal. The faster we find him, the faster I’ll get my money from that brothel.”

The northern mountain. Jaehwan couldn’t help but look in the direction of that ominous place, source of countless legends and scary stories told to children everywhere. Home of the demon clan, its paths deadly to everyone stupid enough to tread them.  
For the first time Jaehwan wished he hadn’t been so stubborn in his decisions, his life was definitely more precious that his crushed pride.

“What about you?” Hongbin asked, interrupting his train of thought.  
“What about me?”  
“I’ve told you my story. If we’re going to travel together, it’s only fair that you tell me more about yourself. What made you become a bandit?”  
Jaehwan snorted: “I’m a thief, not a lowly bandit. I don’t kill people.”  
“But you killed last night.”  
“How…”  
“I saw how that man was looking behind you for someone to help him. But no-one came.”  
“They would have killed us without a second thought. I don’t kill people… without a good reason.”  
He stood up: “Come on, let’s continue. We have a long journey ahead.”


	3. Chapter 3

They walked for most of the day. The weather was pleasant, so they stopped only for a quick lunch, reaching the outskirts of the forest by late afternoon.  
Neither of them tried to talk much, still wary of their past encounters, but Jaehwan kept an eye on Hongbin all day, checking if his fever came back.

Hongbin wanted to walk a bit longer since it wasn’t sunset yet, but Jaehwan insisted that they set up camp anyway, as they had found an abandoned hut and the next village was about a day away.  
They ate a light meal, just some cheese and bread, to avoid wasting too much food before they could replenish their supplies.

The roof of the hut had fallen in, probably long ago. They cleared up a space big enough to spread their blankets and make a small fire.  
“I’ll keep watch first, go sleep.” Jaehwan said.

Hongbin lay on his blanket and closed his eyes, only to open them a few seconds after and stare at his travel companion: “You know, I wasn’t lying last time.”  
“About what?”  
“About us having fun together. You’re my type.”  
Jaehwan made a noise halfway between a snort and a laugh: “Are you always this straightforward?”  
“Does it bother you?” Hongbin grinned back.

Jaehwan stood and crossed the little space between them. He looked down at the lying form of the other man at his feet for a few instants, thinking. He then lifted Hongbin’s blanket with his foot, pushing it on the side, before sitting on his lap and straddling him.  
“I guess I owe you one from last time.” he murmured, voice low.  
He ground his hips against Hongbin’s and smirked at the gasp he received in response.

Jaehwan shifted till he was no longer straddling Hongbin, but instead lying half on top of him, one leg between Hongbin’s own, his hand cupping Hongbin’s half-hard cock over his pants.  
Hongbin put his hand behind Jaehwan’s neck and tried to pull him down for a kiss, but Jaehwan pulled back, staring into the other man’s eyes: “No kisses.”  
Hongbin nodded and made a whimpering noise as Jaehwan pressed his hand against his crotch again.  
Jaehwan smirked, then leaned in to leave a trail of open-mouthed kissed along Hongbin’s jaw and down his neck.

Hongbin let out a sigh when Jaehwan finally undid the ties at his waist, freeing his stiff cock and pushing his pants down his thighs.  
The thief wrapped his long fingers around it, stroking it lazily and flicking his wrist around the head, spreading any bead of precum over the warm skin.  
“I guess this time you’ll be the one begging me, right?” Jaehwan breathed over Hongbin’s neck.

He licked his way down Hongbin’s throat and sucked along his collarbones.  
“Do you want to spread your legs for me? Get on your hands and knees? Want me to take you over and over till you can barely walk?”  
Hongbin moaned loud, and whined when Jaehwan pulled back and stopped touching him.

“Relax.” Jaehwan chuckled. He bunched up Hongbin’s shirt under his chin, exposing his chest.  
His hand wrapped around Hongbin’s cock once again, and he leaned down, licking one of Hongbin’s nipples before sucking on it. He felt Hongbin shiver underneath him, and he grinned.  
“Jaehwan, I’m about to…”   
“I don’t think so.”

Jaehwan squeezed the base of Hongbin’s cock tight, denying him his orgasm and making him groan loud.  
“Please…” Hongbin whispered.  
Jaehwan resumed his stroking, never taking his eyes off Hongbin’s face as he pleasured him. He quite liked how his eyes fluttered shut and his mouth opened in a cute ‘o’.  
But Jaehwan wasn’t going to let him come yet.

When he squeezed his cock again, Hongbin tried to reach between his legs, but Jaehwan swatted his hands away.  
“Jaehwan, please…”  
“Please what?”  
“Please let me come…”

Jaehwan moved his hand lazily on Hongbin’s cock as he stared at him: the other man was looking right back at him, gaze unfaltering, his lower lip caught between his teeth, and he was raising his hips to try and get more friction against his aching member.

Jaehwan smirked, then leaned down to take Hongbin’s cock in his mouth: first the tip as he swirled his tongue around it, then the rest of it as he bobbed his head to take it all in.  
Hongbin almost screamed and arched his back. His hands flew to Jaehwan’s head, carding through his hair, keeping him gently in place.  
“Jaehwan… I can’t…” he sobbed, pulling lightly at the thief’s hair.  
Jaehwan hummed around Hongbin’s dick, and very soon he felt it swell and throb in his mouth. He swallowed when Hongbin came with a loud moan, then helped him get dressed.

“What was that for?” Hongbin asked when his breath got back to normal.  
“Well, we’re partners now, I couldn’t let you come in your pants like you did with me. Unfortunately.” Jaehwan replied with a smirk before turning his attention to the dying flames, reviving them.

Hongbin went to sleep, and Jaehwan woke him up a few hours later so he could rest as well.  
They moved out soon after sunrise, wanting to get to the next village as soon as possible.

“You haven’t really replied to my question.” Hongbin said when they stopped to rest and eat something around midday.  
“Which one? You’ve asked a lot of questions this morning.”  
“That you promptly ignored. All of them. But I’m referring to what I asked you the other night.”  
Jaehwan just raised his eyebrow, and Hongbin went on: “Tell me more about yourself. Or are you afraid? There’s something unusual about you… you don’t look like a common thief.”  
“There’s nothing exciting in my life.” Jaehwan sighed, and rubbed his hand over his face, “I’m an orphan, and I was raised into criminal life. That’s it.”  
Hongbin looked at him as if trying to decide whether he could believe it or not, but he didn’t use his powers to pry an answer from him, as he didn’t want to break his promise.

They reached the village when it was already dark, and headed immediately to the closest inn.  
“Jaehwan… I don’t think I have enough money for a room.” Hongbin informed him, almost embarrassed.  
“Don’t worry, it’s on me. I’ll get paid back more than enough when I finally sell you at that brothel.”

They got two rooms, and took the chance to have a proper bath before meeting up downstairs to eat a warm meal.  
They were planning out their journey over a mug of mead when someone bumped into Jaehwan: “Sorry, I… Jaehwan? Is that you?”  
Jaehwan froze and turned around, slowly. He frowned when the person who apologized pulled down his hood: “Hakyeon?”  
“It really IS you!”

The stranger beamed at Jaehwan then sat down next to him on the bench, wrapping his arm around his shoulders: “I thought you were dead! Why did you disappear like that?”  
“Keep your voice down, will you?” Jaehwan sighed in exasperation, but let himself get pulled into the embrace with a small smile.  
“Where have you been all this time? I’ve been looking for you.”  
Jaehwan shot Hongbin a glance before looking back at Hakyeon: “I’ve been around.”  
“So you’re a friend of Jaehwan?” Hongbin interjected.  
Hakyeon turned around in his seat to have a good look at him, as if he didn’t even realize he was there: “Yes. I’ve been so rude, I apologize. I’m Hakyeon, and you are…?”  
“He’s Hongbin.” Jaehwan replied. “Hongbin, Hakyeon and I, we used to be… colleagues.”

Hakyeon made an offended face: “How can you be so cold? We used to be more than colleagues. But at least,” he stared at Hongbin, gaze moving from his face to whatever of his body he could see, “you still have good taste. Any chance you’re up for some fun?”  
That unexpected request made Hongbin flush, and Jaehwan grunted: “Leave him alone. Please tell me you don’t have a room here.”  
“I don’t, unfortunately.” Hakyeon sighed. “But I have lots of free time tonight, and you have so many things to tell me.”

Hongbin smiled and stood: “Well, you clearly have quite some catching up to do. I’m going back to my room. Nice meeting you, Hakyeon.”  
“Likewise, Hongbin. Try not to fall too deep for Jaehwan’s charms, alright?”  
Jaehwan punched Hakyeon on the arm, but Hakyeon just laughed. Hongbin wished them goodnight and left.

The beds of the inn weren’t by far the most comfortable, but, after sleeping on the ground for so many night, it felt like heaven to Hongbin.  
He woke up early, well-rested, and decided to have breakfast and go buy a few things he needed on his own. He had heard Jaehwan come back to his room quite late the night before, and wanted to let him sleep as much as he could.

He quickly found what he was looking for and was headed back to the inn, when he saw a familiar figure wandering around the market.  
“Hakyeon?” he called out, walking closer to the other man.  
“Hey. Are you alone?” Hakyeon smiled, and Hongbin found it contagious.  
“Yes, I didn’t want to wake up Jaehwan yet, and I was bored at the inn.”  
“Ah, I guess it’s my fault, I did keep him up till late.”

They had reached the last stalls of the market, and now were walking in the direction of Hongbin’s inn. Not many people were out in this part of town, and the streets were quiet, compared to the buzz and noise of the merchants.  
“So… you’re a thief too?” Hongbin asked to make some conversation, but also out of curiosity.  
Hakyeon laughed out loud, as if he found what Hongbin said very amusing: “Is that what he told you?”  
“Well, yes. He almost robbed me as well when we met.”

Hakyeon stopped in front of a side street, and turned to stare at Hongbin, a glint in his eyes: “Hongbin, I am an assassin. And I’ve been one all my life.”  
He smiled and waved goodbye, and soon disappeared from view down the narrow side street, leaving a bewildered Hongbin behind.


	4. Chapter 4

“You’ve been unusually quiet all morning.” Jaehwan said later that day. “What’s wrong?”  
“Nothing, don’t worry. Let’s keep going.”  
They were finally getting out of the plains: in front of them one last patch of forest, before the ground became rocky and gradually evolved into mountain.

Jaehwan frowned, but didn’t say anything. He wanted to get to the edge of the forest by night, as the path would turn before the plains ended, not guiding them to the mountains.  
No sane people ever went to the forest at the foot of the demon mountain, and definitely no path cut through it.

His thoughts got interrupted by Hongbin stumbling next to him. He grabbed his arm to help him steady himself, but Hongbin shook him off: “I’m fine.”  
Jaehwan didn’t know Hongbin enough, but he was sure something was definitely off with him today.   
He was used to notice every little detail, as they could even mean the difference between life and death sometimes.   
So he didn’t fail to see how Hongbin seemed to lose his breath too soon, how he sweated a little too much and how he tripped over his own feet too often.

“We could have stopped if you had told me you didn’t feel well.” Jaehwan said over the fire when they set up camp for the night.  
“I’m fine.” Hongbin replied, eyes fixed on the flames.  
Jaehwan reached over to place his hand on the other man’s forehead, but Hongbin jerked away, not letting Jaehwan touch him: “I said I’m fine.”  
“Are you always that much of a jerk or did I do something to earn this?”  
Hongbin pressed his lips together before replying: “I'm just tired. I… there’s something I need to ask you, but it can wait till tomorrow.”  
Jaehwan nodded, and Hongbin lay down on his blankets, falling asleep immediately.

A couple of hours later, the sound of laboured breaths woke Jaehwan up.  
He sat up, looking at his companion: Hongbin was sick again.   
Jaehwan quickly moved to his side to check the situation. Hongbin clearly had a fever, he was sweating a lot and tremors shook his whole body.  
He rummaged inside his bag and took out a small pouch. He poured some of the white powder that was in it into a drinking bowl, and mixed it with some water.

Jaehwan slid an arm behind Hongbin’s shoulders, lifting him up.  
“Hongbin, wake up. I have medicine.”  
Hongbin shivered, then his eyes shot open. They were unfocused, staring at some point behind Jaehwan’s head, and red.  
Jaehwan bit down on his lip, and grabbed Hongbin’s chin, turning his face towards him: “Hey. Look at me. Talk to me.”  
“It… burns.” Hongbin croaked as his back arched, his hands clawing at Jaehwan’s arm.

“It hurts, Jaehwan. It feels like… fire… inside me.”  
Jaehwan looked at Hongbin’s pained face, then picked up the bowl he had prepared: “Drink this. It should help with the fever.”  
Hongbin gulped down the medicine, and Jaehwan cradled him till his breath went back to normal and his eyes turned to their usual dark colour.  
Since Hongbin was still clutching at his arm, Jaehwan just settled behind him when he laid him down on the blanket, and tried to get some more sleep as well.

He woke up when the sky was already bright, because he felt Hongbin turning around in his arms.  
“Can we stay here some more? I feel like my head’s about to explode.” Hongbin’s voice was soft against his chest.  
“I should get up and make sure we’re safe.”  
“Don’t worry, there are only a few rabbits and a couple of deer around.”  
“How do you know?”  
“I… I feel them. I wasn’t able to yesterday.” He tightened his grip on Jaehwan’s waist: “Let’s stay like this for a little more, please.”  
“Alright. Sleep now.”

Hongbin woke up again a few hours later, alone.  
“Jaehwan?” he called, jumping to his feet. No answer, but Jaehwan’s stuff was still there.  
He closed his eyes, and tried to focus.  
Yes, he could feel it, almost see it if he concentrated enough. Jaehwan’s presence, strong and warm.  
Hongbin walked in the direction where he knew he would find his companion, deeper into the forest.

He reached a stream, and, sure enough, Jaehwan was there: shirtless and barefoot, his pants rolled up to his knees, he was standing in the middle of the stream, water running down his face and chest.  
He turned when he heard Hongbin coming near, and gave him a small smile: “Hey. Feeling better?”  
Hongbin nodded: “Yeah, thanks.”  
“You should come in, the water feels great.”

Hongbin sat down on the grassy shore and took off his boots, then his gaze fell on Jaehwan’s half-naked body.   
He spent a few moments to appreciate it while Jaehwan splashed more water over his arms and back: he had a lean torso, not too muscular. Hongbin’s gaze trailed over strong thighs and well defined biceps, finally resting at a spot on Jaehwan’s right side.  
“Is that a scar?” he asked as he finally stepped into the water himself.  
Jaehwan looked down and frowned: “Yeah.”  
“Did you get that as a memento of your thief life?” Hongbin asked, splashing cold water on his face and hair and not looking at the other man, “Or as an assassin?”

Jaehwan froze: “What did you say?”  
“I saw Hakyeon at the market yesterday morning, before we left.”  
“And what did he tell you?”  
“He was pretty amused when I asked him if he was a thief, like you. He just pointed out the right profession.”  
They both fell silent for a few seconds, then Hongbin spoke again: “Why didn’t you tell me?”  
“Because that’s in the past. I told you I’m a thief, and that’s the truth.”

Jaehwan took a deep breath, then climbed out of the water: “He’s right though, that’s what I used to be. Then… something happened, and I quit.”  
“That scar happened?”  
Jaehwan looked at Hongbin and rubbed his hand over his side absent-mindedly: “I… had a job to do. They just told me someone had to be killed, the contractor paid a lot of money. Assassins don’t ask questions, we just do what we’re paid for. It turned out my mark was a young boy, barely older than ten. I refused to kill an innocent child over what I then learned to be a stupid family feud.”  
“And they let you go?”  
“Of course not. You hire assassins because you want the job done, no matter what. I tried to leave, but they were having none of it. I made it out only because they thought I was dead. Honestly, I really thought I would be.”  
“Aren’t… aren’t you afraid that Hakyeon will let them know you’re still alive?”  
“He was the only one I could really trust back there. And if it turns out I can’t anymore, I’ll deal with it when the time comes.”

They made their way back to the camp in silence.  
“Are you sure you’re not feeling feverish anymore?” Jaehwan asked, “I still have some medicine.”  
“No, I’m fine. I’m sorry for not telling you I was sick, I thought I could make it.”  
“It’s alright. Does that happen often?”  
Hongbin looked a bit uncomfortable: “It used to. When… when my magic first appeared, as a child. And then it started again around the time we met.”  
“And you think these episodes are connected to your magic?”  
Hongbin nodded: “I… think so. It always feels like my senses are sharper and I feel stronger, different somehow…”  
“Like this morning?”  
“Yeah. I hadn’t felt this bad in years though.”  
“We better find your father as soon as possible. Let’s rest, we’ll leave at dawn.”


	5. Chapter 5

The following day started with a few clouds on the horizon that slowly grew in number over the morning.  
Jaehwan and Hongbin left their camp as soon as the sky was bright, determined to quickly leave the forest behind them and look for a path over the mountain.  
“I’m sure people do cross these mountains, even if not often.” Jaehwan said as they neared the edge of the forest. “This side is the best option for a path, it’s not as steep as the other side.”

They walked all day between the forest and the base of the mountain, looking for anything that looked like a passage, but seeing nothing like it.  
“We should find someplace dry to rest tonight, I fear it’s going to rain soon.” Jaehwan announced as he looked up to the sky, now covered in grey clouds.

They tracked back a bit, to a point where Jaehwan thought had seen what looked like a cave opening on a rocky wall a few metres above them.  
They slowly climbed up to the cave entrance, and Jaehwan let out a satisfied grunt: it was bigger than it looked like from outside, and dry.  
“Let’s get some dry wood so we can light a fire.” He glanced around, at the back of the cave and the forest beneath it. “I hope we won’t have any unwelcomed guests tonight. I don’t think I’m that eager to deal with a bear.”  
Hongbin chuckled and dropped his bag on the floor, swiping the ground clean from pebbles with his foot: “Don’t worry, I don’t sense any bear around here.” He closed his eyes and tilted his head, as if listening to something: “There are a few rabbits though. Fancy some roast meat for dinner?”

They both walked back to the forest to gather materials and, almost two hours later, they walked back with their arms full of branches and a couple of rabbits dangling from Hongbin’s fist.  
They also found a stream running down the mountain and through the forest not far from their cave. Jaehwan made a mental map of its location as they refilled their flasks with fresh water.

“I think we need more wood if we want it to last all night.” Hongbin said after they started a small fire inside the cave. “I’ll go and get more, it shouldn’t take long.”  
“I think we’re fine, we have more.” Jaehwan replied, pointing at a small heap of branches sitting along the cave wall.  
“Just to be safe, it won’t hurt having more if it starts raining too. I saw some by the stream, I’ll just go and come back right away.”  
Jaehwan just shrugged, so Hongbin left.

The sky quickly darkened and, just like Jaehwan predicted, it started raining. It was just a gentle drizzle at first, but it became heavier in minutes.  
Jaehwan stood at the cave entrance, scanning the ground ahead and below him for any sign of Hongbin.  
“Why the hell is he taking so long?” he muttered as the rain washed away everything, coming down so heavily it was difficult to see a few paces ahead.

Cursing under his breath, Jaehwan pulled up his hood and left in search of Hongbin.  
He found him not far from their camp, just inside the woods. He was lying on the muddy ground, sticks and branches scattered all around him.  
“Hongbin!” he screamed, running to his side.  
Hongbin was unconscious, his brow was furrowed and he was panting. Jaehwan put a hand on his forehead and cursed out loud: “Fuck, he’s burning.”  
With a grunt he threw him over his back and made his way to the cave as fast as he could, thankful for the already-lit fire inside.

Hongbin was drenched, and had a fever. Jaehwan took his clothes off and wrapped him in a dry blanket, making him lie on the ground and close to the fire.   
He then mixed some medicine and made him drink it, opening his mouth and massaging his throat to make him swallow the liquid.  
“You’re really a handful, you know that? Why did I agree to this…” he muttered.

Jaehwan took off his own clothes as well and squeezed the water out of them, setting them to dry together with Hongbin’s.  
He was about to get another blanket when he heard Hongbin move around in his sleep and groan, his face scrunched up as if in pain.  
“Hey.” he whispered as he kneeled close to him, brushing his wet hair away from his forehead. “Does it hurt? Let me get you some water.”  
Just as he tried to stand up, Hongbin grabbed his arm: “Stay…” he croaked.

Jaehwan sighed, then pulled up Hongbin to a sitting position and dragged him close to the cave wall. With a few moves he managed to sit against the rock wall and wrap himself in the blanket, Hongbin safely nested between his legs.  
“Jaehwan…”  
“Shhhh… I’m here, I’m not going anywhere. Rest now.” Jaehwan wrapped his arms around Hongbin’s waist and over his chest, thus preventing him from falling over, then tried to get some sleep as well.

He didn’t get to rest much though.   
After a few hours he woke up: his back was aching from leaning against the hard cave wall for so long, and from having to hold up Hongbin.  
The rain was still falling hard outside, and the fire had almost gone out. Jaehwan put his hand on Hongbin’s forehead and sighed in relief: the fever had gone down, and Hongbin’s breath was back to normal.  
He carefully wriggled free and laid Hongbin on the ground, put his clothes on and spread his own blanket next to the sleeping man.

“Who would have thought I’d be playing babysitter…” he mumbled as he lay back down behind Hongbin, wrapping his arm around his waist.  
It was weird how he willingly did all these things for a complete stranger, he thought.

As far as he remembered, he had always been alone, he only had himself to take care of, and he was alright with that.   
Even during his assassin days he never relied on anyone, and that was a good thing, because assassins weren’t social people by nature.  
There was Hakyeon… Hakyeon had been his only friend, of sorts. They began sleeping together one night as a means to vent after a particular gruesome mission, and went back to each other whenever they needed it, building up a weird kind of relationship.

He never got close to anyone else again since then. Till he met Hongbin.  
Jaehwan didn’t know why he got so caught up with Hongbin. Revenge for how he’d been treated, sure, and he couldn’t deny that he found him very attractive (and Hongbin felt the same about him, he made that clear), but it wasn’t really like him to stick around people, he didn’t like it, it was dangerous to have any kind of ties.  
He lay on his back and stared at the rocky ceiling, barely lit by the dying fire: he just needed to see this agreement come to an end, bring Hongbin to that damned village, and then he could walk free, right?  
In irritation, he tried to get more rest, but after getting in and out of sleep for a while, he just lay there until the sky became brighter.

When the sun rose, he got up as well. The rain had stopped for now, but heavy clouds were still visible. It would be raining again, Jaehwan thought.  
He decided to go wash himself at the stream and see if he could find something else to eat: if Hongbin woke up he would be able to know where he was.

He came back to the cave about one hour later, with some berries and a fresh fish.   
He stirred the fire and checked on Hongbin while the fish cooked: he was still sleeping peacefully, the fever gone.  
“Hey.” Jaehwan gently shook him. “Wake up, Hongbin. You should eat something.”  
No matter how much he shook him though, Hongbin wouldn’t wake up.  
Jaehwan frowned: “What’s wrong with him…”

He decided to let him rest a bit more, while keeping an eye on him.  
It soon started to rain again, and Jaehwan sat against the cold rock wall, closed his eyes, and wished for the day to end quickly.

Hongbin woke up when the sun had just set behind the thick rain clouds.  
He grunted softly, and moved around in his blanket before blinking his eyes open, scanning the place: “Jaehwan…?”  
His voice was hoarse, so Jaehwan brought him some water and helped him drink: “I’m here. How are you feeling?”  
“What happened? I remember… I was in the forest, wasn’t I? and… I couldn’t breathe…”  
“I found you lying on the ground by the stream. You had a fever, you’ve been sleeping for two days straight.”  
“I’m… I’m so sorry I’m causing you so much trouble. Thanks for taking care of me.”

He said that with a light blush on his cheeks, and Jaehwan grinned. He stood and turned around, looking for the berries he picked that morning, together with some of the dried meat they bought back at the village.  
“Eat, and rest a bit more. We’re leaving early tomorrow morning.”

They left the cave right after sunrise, and resumed their search for the mountain pass.  
Jaehwan insisted that Hongbin walked in front of him: he didn’t want to get him out of his sight, in case he felt sick again and he didn’t notice.  
He snorted as Hongbin tripped over a root and almost fell on his face, presenting him with a nice sight of his (nicely shaped) behind.  
Jaehwan smirked, thinking of a few situations he would have Hongbin take that position…

As he was still fantasizing, Hongbin turned around sharply: “Stop… stop that.”  
Jaehwan blinked, unsure of what he meant: “Stop what?”  
“I saw that… I saw what you were thinking.” He grinned: “I wouldn’t mind trying that, you have some interesting ideas… But maybe you should try and keep your thoughts for yourself while I figure out how to work…” he gestured at his head, “this… out.”  
Jaehwan groaned: “Great, did I really need a mind-reading demon as a travel companion?”

They fell silent, and resumed walking.   
About an hour later, they noticed what looked like a path snaking out of the forest and up towards the mountain. It was slightly covered in overgrown weeds, as if rarely used.  
“I think we’ve found it.” Jaehwan said with a smile.


	6. Chapter 6

The path looked disused but was fairly large and easy to walk on, as if it had been well-worn by generations of people treading on it. It led up the mountain, winding gently. 

Jaehwan and Hongbin began their trek in silence, knowing they might be near their destination.  
They hadn’t walked for more than twenty minutes when mist began appearing on the path, thin at first but growing thicker with each step they took.  
“Hongbin?” Jaehwan, who was walking behind the other man, called when the mist got so thick he couldn’t see anything past his stretched arm.  
“What?” Hongbin replied without turning around.  
“Where are you?”

Hongbin stopped and looked back at Jaehwan: he was standing in the middle of the path, turning around and looking around frantically, as if he was lost.  
“I’m right here.” Hongbin told him, taking a step closer to him. He placed a hand on Jaehwan’s arm and the other almost jumped.  
“This fog… it’s so thick, I can’t see anything. We need to be careful.”  
Hongbin frowned and looked around them: “Jaehwan… what fog?”

Jaehwan blinked, looking around the path and then back at Hongbin: “You mean… you don’t see it? What kind of sorcery is this?”  
“There’s no fog around us. Maybe… maybe it’s some kind of magic to protect the path from anyone who isn’t supposed to be here. I mean… I have demon blood, but you don’t.”  
“That… makes sense. That would explain a lot of rumors about this place as well. We’ll have to walk close till this fog is gone.”

Hongbin grabbed Jaehwan’s hand and held on to it when the other man tried to shake it free.  
“This is better, less chances of you getting lost. I’ll walk you out of this, just let me know when the fog disappears, alright?”  
Jaehwan sighed but nodded, giving Hongbin’s hand a squeeze before they resumed their journey.

It was a bit awkward, for Jaehwan, to find himself unable to see anything and relying on another person to walk in the right direction.  
Hongbin’s hand around his was strong and unwavering, pulling him forward and his deep voice warned him of every rock in the path, of every turn they had to make. That didn’t make Jaehwan trip on his feet less often anyway.  
He cursed under his breath: trusting someone like that was something he got taught never to do.

“Hongbin.” he said after a while. They hadn’t really spoken since the mind-reading accident in the woods earlier that morning.  
“Hmm?”  
“How’s… your head?”  
“What? ...Oh! I apologize for what happened, I didn’t mean to read your thoughts like that. I didn’t even realize I could. Seems like I can control it a lot better now.”  
Jaehwan half-snorted, half-laughed: “You’re taking this awfully well.”  
Hongbin shrugged: “What’s the point in getting upset? I’m a little bit different every time I get a fever, and it’s not like I can change my demon blood. Better get used to it, don’t you think?”  
“You’re brave.”  
“Brave?” Hongbin’s laugh had a bitter tone to it. “The truth is, I’m scared shitless. I’m… I’m really glad I’m not alone.”  
“I’m still going to sell you off after this, you know.”  
Hongbin chuckled at that: “I know.”

Silence fell again between them, and Jaehwan’s mind began to wander again. He thought about how warm and strong Hongbin’s hand around his was, and how he wouldn’t mind having those hands roaming over his skin…  
His thoughts were interrupted by something that Hongbin said but he didn’t catch.  
“I’m sorry, what did you say?” he blinked.  
Hongbin raised an eyebrow as he stared back at him: “It’s not like you to space out like that. I said it’s almost evening, and I can’t tell how much further this path will go on. Maybe we should find a place to spend the night.”  
“The fog is still very thick for me. Do you see any place we can rest around here?”

Hongbin stopped and surveyed their surroundings: the mountain rose on one side of the path, while the other ended in a steep cliff. Hongbin wondered how many people fell down that cliff because of the fog, and shuddered.  
“Not really. Shall we walk some more?”  
He started off without a warning or waiting for Jaehwan’s reply, pulling him with him and almost making him trip.

When they decided to finally stop and rest for the night, the ground had just become level again, and the path was now winding through two walls of rock. Occasionally, other paths leading away from the main one, or straight into dead ends, would be seen, making the place look like a giant maze.  
“Wow…” Hongbin whispered, “no wonder people never reached the demon village. If they didn’t fall down the cliff because of the fog, they would surely get lost in here.”  
“Yeah… the mist is really thin here. I think I can go on by myself now.”  
Jaehwan let go of Hongbin’s hand and took a few steps forward to where the main path was crossed by two small other ones.  
He put his hands on his hips and looked both ways: “Where to now?”  
“I think we should stop for today. It’s getting dark, and it wouldn’t be wise to keep going.”

They didn’t have any wood to start a fire, so they looked for a spot that would shelter them from the crisp night air.  
“Should I keep watch first?” Jaehwan asked as he wrapped himself in his blanket.  
“No need to. There’s no-one around here, not even an animal.” Hongbin replied, sitting down close to him and trying to cover himself with Jaehwan’s blanket as well.  
Jaehwan raised an eyebrow at him: “What are you doing?”  
“Keeping both of us warmer. Don’t worry,” he grinned “I won’t take advantage of you while you sleep.”  
“As if.” Jaehwan snorted, “You forget what I used to do for a living. You’d find yourself missing a finger or two before you even realized it.”  
“Is that your way of flirting? Very charming.” Hongbin’s grin never faltered.  
“Go sleep.” Jaehwan smiled, amused.

The bright light of early morning sun woke Jaehwan up. Hongbin was still sleeping, his head resting on Jaehwan’s shoulder.  
He shook him awake, then cracked his aching back as he stood.  
They resumed their journey without saying much, keeping an eye on every new path they came across.

“Not that way.” Hongbin grabbed Jaehwan’s arm as he began walking down a narrow path on his right.  
“How do you know this is not the right one?”  
Hongbin shook his head: “I just know it. Trust me.”

At the following intersection he stopped and tilted his head, as if he was listening to something.  
“Do you hear that?” he smiled.  
When Jaehwan told him he didn’t hear anything, Hongbin grinned and set off on the side path, urging Jaehwan to follow him.  
He stopped at the end of the path, where it opened into a large clearing covered in rocky pools. The warm water had shaped and tinted the rocks with its sediments, and the place looked like a liquid kaleidoscope.

Hongbin walked to the edge of the nearest pool, and took off his boots.  
“What are you doing?” Jaehwan asked.  
“What does it look like?”  
“Are you really going to take a bath now?”  
Hongbin stopped while taking off his shirt and grinned: “Why not? We might be at the end of our journey and might not be able to enjoy this later. Come on Jaehwan, loosen up a bit.”

He stripped and stepped into the warm water with a pleased sigh. He waddled to the far end of the pool, dipping his head in the water before leaning against the edge.  
“Are you coming or not?” he called out to Jaehwan who was still frowning at him, arms crossed over his chest.  
Jaehwan shook his head and grumbled something, but dropped his bag on the ground and took off his clothes as well.  
Once in the water he closed his eyes, enjoying the soothing effect on his tired muscles.

“Feels good, doesn’t it?”  
Jaehwan blinked his eyes open as Hongbin moved closer to him.  
“Hmm.” was his only reply. His breath caught a little when Hongbin put his hands on his chest, bumping over his nipples and gently brushing over his scar.  
“What are you doing?” Jaehwan murmured with a half-smile.  
Hongbin huffed against Jaehwan’s neck: “Always asking useless questions, are you?”  
“Always so straight-forward, are you?” Jaehwan chuckled, but grabbed Hongbin by his waist and pulled him flush against his chest.

Hongbin kissed Jaehwan’s jaw and slowly moved down, along his neck. Jaehwan closed his eyes and shivered, sighing softly.  
He grabbed Hongbin’s hips tighter and pressed their bodies together, their half-hard cocks trapped against each other’s thighs.

“Please touch me.” Hongbin whined.  
“So impatient…” Jaehwan grinned, his hand brushing over Hongbin’s ass and back to the front, palming his cock. “Do you want me that badly?”  
He whispered those last words in a low voice, right in Hongbin’s ear, who nodded and let out a shaky moan.  
“Been wanting you since that night in the forest…” he admitted, looking away.

Jaehwan’s cock twitched at those words, and Hongbin moaned again.  
He pushed Jaehwan back, his hands on his chest, motioning him to sit on the stone edge of the pool.   
He stood between his legs when he finally obeyed, and wrapped his fingers around Jaehwan’s stiff cock, stroking it lazily and flicking his wrist right below the head, enjoying the way Jaehwan gasped.  
“Been wondering how you’d taste…” he whispered, voice raw, as he leaned forward to wrap his lips around the tip of Jaehwan’s cock, swiping his tongue over the precum that had already begun to leak.

He bobbed his head slowly as he took more in his mouth, hands caressing Jaehwan’s thighs, dragging his nails gently over the pale skin.  
Jaehwan placed his hand at the back of Hongbin’s head, carding his fingers through his wet hair and petting him as he bit his lower lip, trying not to make too much noise.  
“Don’t hold it in…” Hongbin murmured, looking up at him with hooded eyes.  
Jaehwan slid his hand from the top of Hongbin’s head, caressing his cheek and swiping his index finger over his swollen lip: “Get out of there so I can fuck you…” he growled.

Hongbin groaned and quickly stepped out of the pool. He rummaged inside his bag and took out a little jar that he placed in Jaehwan’s hand, then lay on top of his discarded clothes, waiting for Jaehwan to join him.  
Jaehwan opened the jar, sniffed it, then dipped a finger in it. He raised an eyebrow in surprise as he rubbed two now slick fingers together: “When did you get this?” he grinned.  
The tip of Hongbin’s ears had turned a nice shade of pink, and he looked away as he replied: “In the last town we stayed in… it’s-it’s got a lot of different uses…”  
“I’m sure it has…” Jaehwan chuckled, gently nudging Hongbin’s legs apart so he could kneel between them.

He coated his fingers in the salve and leaned down to kiss Hongbin’s stomach. He slowly moved up his chest, reaching a nipple and taking it between his lips, teasing it with his tongue, his thumb rubbing his other nipple in slow circles.  
“Please… ah…” Hongbin moaned, arching his back.  
“Be patient…” Jaehwan murmured, giving Hongbin’s nipple one last lick before moving to the other.

His hand now trailed over Hongbin’s side and over his cock, his fingers wrapping around the base but not stroking it.  
Jaehwan’s other hand went between Hongbin’s legs instead, one slick finger gently pressing against his entrance.  
With another whine, Hongbin pushed back against Jaehwan’s hand. Jaehwan just chuckled, then slipped his finger in till the knuckle.

Hongbin gasped and threw his head back, eyes closed.  
“Does it hurt?” Jaehwan asked, frowning.  
“No, just… not used to this anymore. Please don’t stop.” Hongbin gave him a half-grin, wrapping his arms around Jaehwan’s shoulders.  
“I wasn't going to stop.” Jaehwan grinned back, slowly pushing a second finger in.

He took his time to stretch him till he felt Hongbin relax under him, then spread more salve on his cock and settled back between Hongbin’s legs.  
Jaehwan grabbed Hongbin’s legs under his knees and almost bent him in half as he leaned forward while pushing himself in, pulling out and pushing back in short thrusts till he was completely sheathed.  
He breathed a bit heavily against Hongbin’s neck as they both adjusted to the feeling.  
“This feels so good.” Hongbin moaned, “You feel so good, Jaehwan.”

Jaehwan waited for Hongbin to tell him he was ready, then began moving, rolling his hips forward in slow, languid movements, one arm wrapped around the small of Hongbin’s back, slightly lifting him off the ground.  
Hongbin just moaned as he kept whispering ‘So good… so good.’ in Jaehwan’s ear, arms around his neck to hold him close.

After a while though, the rocky floor got hard on Jaehwan’s knees even through the clothes beneath them, and he began shifting on the spot, a little uncomfortable.  
“Let’s switch.” Hongbin suggested when he noticed it, wriggling out of Jaehwan’s embrace.  
They traded places, so that Jaehwan lay on his back now, while Hongbin straddled him.  
As soon as he sat back on his cock with a sigh, Hongbin began moving up and down in a steady rhythm, soft moans escaping his lips with each movement.  
Jaehwan just placed his hands on Hongbin’s thighs and looked up at him with hooded eyes, biting his lower lip.

Hongbin soon grew tired and begun to grind his hips against Jaehwan’s crotch instead, so Jaehwan grabbed Hongbin’s ass in his hands, planted his heels on the rocky ground and snapped his hips up while pulling Hongbin down on his cock.  
Hongbin cried out, mouth slightly open and eyes closed, as his hand began stroking his neglected cock.  
“Jaehwan… I…” Hongbin panted, his hand moving faster on his dick. Jaehwan gripped Hongbin’s hips harder as he kept thrusting up.  
“Come… I’m close too.” he told Hongbin, not taking his eyes off him.  
Hongbin just nodded, then with a quiet gasp he came, clenching around Jaehwan and setting off his climax as well.

Sighing, Hongbin fell on top of Jaehwan to catch his breath.  
“Did I… did I feel good?” he asked in a small voice.  
Jaehwan looked down at him in surprise, then wrapped his arms loosely around Hongbin’s waist: “Of course you did. You were amazing. Why would you ask that?”  
“Glad I’m good for something at least.”  
Jaehwan felt him smile against his skin, even if his voice sounded sad. Before he could ask him what he meant though, Hongbin had climbed off of him, walking back to the pool: “Let’s clean up and get to that darned village, shall we?”

Once they were back on the path, Hongbin began walking faster, taking turns without even stopping to think which way he needed to go, as if he’d known the way all his life.  
They didn’t say much, and Jaehwan had stopped asking him if he was sure they were on the right track.  
He didn’t know why or when that happened, but he trusted Hongbin.

As soon as he realized that, he scowled: that could be dangerous. Trusting people other than himself could be a mistake, but Jaehwan couldn’t bring himself to analyze that further. Not yet.  
Maybe later… now he had a job to do, he’d find Hongbin’s father and after… after he’d get a lot of money from that damn brothel and get back to the safety of his old life, right?

He was so immersed in his thoughts that he didn’t notice when Hongbin suddenly stopped in his tracks, and almost bumped into him.  
“Look.” Hongbin murmured, a slight tremble in his voice. “We made it.”  
In front of them, nestled in a little valley, they could see the outskirts of a village.


	7. Chapter 7

“Something’s off.” Jaehwan said after taking a look at what could be seen from where they were standing.  
They began walking towards the closest house, looking around them for any sign of its inhabitants.  
“Hongbin… it’s all too quiet. There should be more people around, don’t you think?”  
Hongbin just nodded: “Let’s… let’s just have a look around.”

They reached the small cottage, and took a peek inside the open window: it was clearly abandoned, dust setting in thick layers everywhere. The garden as well was overrun with weeds that grew up to their knees.  
“Looks like no-one’s been living here for quite some time.” Jaehwan murmured, voice low as if he didn’t want to disturb that quiet place.

Hongbin nodded, then took a step back, towards the path they came from: “We’re still outside the village. Maybe… when we get closer…” he said in a small voice.  
Jaehwan didn’t think they would find anyone even in the village proper, but he didn’t have the heart to tell Hongbin yet, so he just nodded as he followed him.

They walked past abandoned fields, where here and there they could see a few cabbages or pumpkins that still survived amongst the weeds.  
The village looked just as deserted as the cottage they had left behind.  
Doors and windows were closed, and gardens were growing wild. They saw a few chickens running away in the dust of the empty streets, scared by their arrival.

Hongbin was walking in silence and looking straight in front of him, his lips pressed together in a thin line. Jaehwan felt sorry for him, but didn’t know what to do or say to make it easier.  
He was still trying to find something nice to say when he saw something that made him stop in his tracks.  
“Hongbin…” he murmured, eyes glued to a spot on his left.  
“Hongbin!” He repeated a little louder when the other didn’t hear him. Hongbin stopped and looked back at him, and then in the direction Jaehwan was staring.  
Where a thin column of smoke was rising in the sky.

“Can’t you feel the presence of other people here?” Jaehwan asked as they set off in the direction the smoke was.  
Hongbin shook his head: “No. I’m guessing my powers don’t work with my own kind… with demons I mean.”

He fell silent once again, and once they got near their destination, Hongbin stopped abruptly.  
The smoke was coming from a small cottage much similar to the one they stopped by before entering the town, but this one looked much more lived in. It also had a small, well-tended garden, with apple trees and a few rows of vegetables.  
Jaehwan thought that it missed only a cat lying on the doorstep to be perfect.  
Instead, he couldn’t suppress the feeling that the whole scene looked a little… empty, sad.

“Aren’t you going to knock?” He called out to Hongbin, who hadn’t yet made an attempt to get closer to the house.  
“I…” he turned around and looked at Jaehwan, eyes filled with fear. “Jaehwan, what if… what if I just got my hopes up?”  
Jaehwan took a step closer and took Hongbin’s hand in his, squeezing it, trying to reassure him: “We came all the way here. Might as well see it through the end, don’t you think? And remember I’m right behind you, alright?”

Hongbin nodded and took a deep breath before walking up to the cottage, but right before he could knock, the door swung open, revealing a startled old lady.  
“Who are you? How did you get here?” She asked, taking a step back.  
“I mean no harm, I swear!” Hongbin stuttered, hands raised in front of him in a peaceful gesture.

The woman’s eyes flashed red for a moment as she stared at Hongbin, then she gasped: “You… you’re one of us!” Her gaze moved to Jaehwan, and as soon as she took him in, she frowned: “But he comes from outside… why is he here? How…?”  
“He came with me… he helped me in my journey.”  
The old woman stared at Jaehwan for a few more seconds, then she stepped aside: “Come inside, child, and tell me your story. The human is welcome as well... if he has your trust, then I cannot possibly turn him away.”

She led them inside, to a warm room with simple furniture: a table with a few chairs, a cupboard and a small sofa. She told them to wait there, and went back out.  
Jaehwan and Hongbin watched her leave from the small window.  
“Where do you think she’s going?” Jaehwan asked, frowning. Hongbin just shrugged.

She came back ten minutes later and went straight to the other room, where Jaehwan presumed was the kitchen, only to appear again holding a tray with two mugs and a jug filled with mead: “The others will be here any time now.” she told them, putting the tray down on the table.  
“The others?” Hongbin asked, puzzled.  
“They’ll be here soon enough, they might want to see you as well.”

After a few more minutes, they heard a knock at the door.   
Taking a peek outside the window, Jaehwan nudged Hongbin with his elbow, pointing to where two elderly men were patiently waiting to be let in.

More people arrived after the first two, quietly sitting down in all the available seats of the room. None of them spoke a single word, all eyes fixed on the two younger men.  
Jaehwan couldn’t help but notice how all the demons in the room had grey hair and a wrinkled face, some even walked aided by canes.  
Where were the younger people?

He began playing with his untouched mug as he mulled over the whole situation, brow furrowed.  
“You can drink that, it’s not poisoned.” a soft voice murmured by his ear, and Jaehwan turned around to see the smiling face of the old lady they had met earlier.  
Jaehwan gave her a small nod, and lifted the mug to his lips, wetting them but not really drinking.

He stole a glance to his side: Hongbin kept bringing the mug to his mouth and drinking in small sips, one after the other. Jaehwan recognized a sign of nervousness in that, and couldn’t really blame him.  
He put his hand on Hongbin’s thigh and gave it a light squeeze, feeling his muscles stiffen at the contact.  
When Hongbin finally looked his way and their eyes met, Jaehwan could see his companion’s shoulders relax a little, and he gave him a half-grin.

“Alright, it looks like we’re all here.” the old lady finally said, then turned to face Hongbin. “What is your name,child? And what is your story? What is it that you’re looking for here?”  
Hongbin licked his lips, opening and closing his mouth as he looked for the right words.  
He stuck a trembling hand out, and Jaehwan grabbed it firmly in his own.  
“I… my name is Hongbin, and I came looking for my father. I think he might be living here.”

Hongbin quietly told everything to the people in the room: his childhood and his mother’s stories about his father, his growing powers and how he had to cope with them on his own, and how he finally decided to go on a journey in search of the village, meeting Jaehwan along the way.  
The elders listened in silence, not saying a word even when Hongbin ended his tale.  
Hongbin felt a little awkward now, but Jaehwan squeezed his hand once again and gave him a small, reassuring smile when their eyes met.

“How old are you, child?” the same old lady asked.  
“I was born in the year of the waning red moon, why?”  
The elders exchanged glances and nodded before looking back at Hongbin.  
“You have come in a time of great difficulties for our people,” a man with a long, grey beard said, “we are all that remains of our once powerful clan.”

Hongbin widened his eyes in shock, but said nothing, thus allowing the old man to go on: “As you both might know, since ancient time kings and warlords have sought our strength and fighting skills to sway battles and wars in their favours, but at the same time our clan has always been feared because of our powers. You called us demons, and we took pride in the fear our name instilled in the hearts of our enemies.

That same pride was, in the end, the cause of our own downfall. Living in such a secluded place, we thought that preserving the purity of our blood was of the utmost importance. We didn’t realize until it was too late that we had dug our own grave.

About thirty years ago, an unknown disease began spreading through the clan: our bodies became weaker with each passing day, as if consumed from within. Those who took ill wasted away under our own eyes, and before we understood the cause of that illness, our numbers had decreased terribly.”

“And… what was it? What was the cause?” Jaehwan whispered before he could stop himself, eyes glued to the pained face of the elder in front of him.  
Hongbin was still holding his hand in a painful grip, but he didn’t make any move to break free, he could only imagine what the other boy was going through right now.

The man shifted his gaze to look at Jaehwan’s face, and with a sad smile he continued his tale: “Most likely, some common disease brought to our mountains by the soldiers returning from the outside world. Something totally harmless for the outside people, but that was like deadly poison for us. Our strenuous efforts in keeping our blood pure in the end only caused us harm, making our bodies utterly vulnerable.

We began noticing that the children that our soldiers had with outside women weren’t affected by the illness, but even then, we let our pride took over.  
Some of these children never came looking for their heritage, but those who did were shunned, we called them ‘bastards’, ‘impure’, until they left and lived their own lives elsewhere, or were killed in battle away from here, leaving us to die one by one because of our own stupidity.”

“So... “ Hongbin croaked, “my father…”  
“It’s been years since we had any news of your father.” the old woman began, her voice gentle. “These mountains offer various fertile valleys hidden from the outside world. Our people is- ...was scattered amongst different villages, some of them even days of walking from each other. Your father lives away from all of us, in one of the abandoned villages, he refused to move here with us when we decided to live all in the same village.”  
“Why would he do that?” Hongbin whispered.  
The old woman looked troubled for a moment: “Your father… he was one of those who warned us about the disease. He had noticed that children born outside of the clan were immune to it, and tried to make us see what was obvious to him. But we wouldn’t listen. So he left the mountains, only to return a year later. When we questioned him, he told us he had married an outside woman but had to leave her suddenly, and that she was with child. He went on to say that he planned on going back and bring them both here, his wife and child, to revive the clan. Stubbornly, we forbade him, so he decided to leave the village once again, disgusted by our narrow-mindedness. Rightly so, I’m ashamed to admit.”

Silence fell in the room after those words.  
“Are you sure that’s Hongbin’s father?” Jaehwan asked in the end.  
The old man who spoke earlier nodded: “They look so much alike, it can’t be a coincidence.”

“Stay the night,” the old woman offered, “it’s already evening, you can leave early in the morning. We can show you the way to your father’s home and supply you with fresh food and water for the journey.”  
“Thank you.” Jaehwan replied with a small smile, “Your help is appreciated.”


	8. Chapter 8

The meal that the old lady cooked for Hongbin and Jaehwan once the other elders left was simple but tasty, both of them grateful for warm food.  
They slept in cots that she laid for them on the floor of her living room, warm and safe for the night.

Hongbin had barely said anything all evening, and even now he was lying with his back to Jaehwan.  
“Hey.” the thief whispered, hand tentatively touching Hongbin’s shoulder. “How are you feeling?”  
When, after a few moments, he didn’t get any reply, he thought that maybe Hongbin was already asleep, and took his hand away.

Jaehwan had almost drifted to sleep when he felt Hongbin turn around and move closer, slipping under his blanket and wrapping his arm around his waist.  
“What should I do, Jaehwan?” he whispered.

Jaehwan almost snorted: didn’t that boy realize that he was the last person he should seek advice from?  
Instead he sighed, and lifted his hand to gently stroke Hongbin’s hair: “We go on. We came this far, are you going to give up everything because you didn’t find what you were looking for right away?”

Jaehwan’s words were stern, but his voice was gentle. His hand never once stopped petting Hongbin’s hair, and Hongbin relaxed against him.  
“I still think you’re very brave for doing this. And whatever you’ll find, you won’t be alone.”  
Hongbin nodded, and Jaehwan could feel the warmth of his breath seeping through his shirt from where Hongbin’s face was pressed against his chest: “Thanks. I’m really glad I met you.”

Jaehwan chuckled low in his throat, amused: “You’re glad? I wanted to rob you and sell you off, in case you don’t remember. Well, I’m still planning to sell you off and make big money, to be honest.”  
Hongbin snorted, and Jaehwan was sure he was smiling, even if he couldn’t see him: “Don’t worry, I haven’t forgotten. Even if you say I’m brave, I’ve only been reckless during this journey. I didn’t plan anything ahead, and if it hadn’t been for you… you’ve saved my life many times, Jaehwan. I’m really grateful, I don’t think I could have come this far without you.”  
Jaehwan coughed, embarrassed, and began patting Hongbin’s back, who was now laughing quietly.

“Why did you help me back then?” Hongbin asked.  
Jaehwan rested his chin on the top of Hongbin’s head and took a deep breath, his thumb now tracing lazy circles on Hongbin’s back.   
He bit the inside of his cheek as he tried to find the right words: “I’m not so sure myself. You were quite the mystery, I wanted to know more… and, of course,” he added, laughing, “my wounded ego after our first encounter played a big part in my choices.”  
“Well, whatever the reason, thank you.” 

Hongbin remained silent a few moments before speaking again: “My mother… she thought I was worthless.”  
“What…?”  
“Since my father left before I was born, she became convinced that I was the reason he abandoned her. She raised me out of duty… she always fed me and never hit me, but she never really loved me. No matter what I did or said, no matter my countless efforts to please her, I was never good enough, smart enough, strong enough.”  
“Is that why you left?” Jaehwan whispered, his arms tightening around Hongbin.  
“Yes. I was happy when my powers first appeared, I thought she would finally be proud of me, but… She made sure to tell me every day that I would never be as good as my father, and that if it wasn’t for me, he would have never left her.”  
“You heard what the elders said, you know that’s not true.”

Hongbin nodded, his voice cracking a little: “I know. Now I know. That’s why I’m scared of finally being so close to him. I grew up despising him and idolizing him at the same time, and now that I can finally know the truth…”   
He broke off with a shaky breath and huddled closer to Jaehwan, who held him till his breathing became normal again.

“No matter what she told you, you’re not worthless. You faced so many things on your own and lived. You’re not a failure, I’m sorry she didn’t see it.”  
“Thank you, Jaehwan.”  
Hongbin calmed down, and after a while he fell asleep in Jaehwan’s arms.

So that’s why, Jaehwan thought as he listened to Hongbin’s soft breathing in the dark.  
Hongbin was hungry for the affection he could never have from his family, he realized.  
Maybe Jaehwan was like that too a long time ago… he couldn’t remember.

Jaehwan never knew his family, his first memories were of a dirty, crowded orphanage, and of being beaten almost everyday over nothing.  
He ran away from that place as soon as he had a chance, hiding in an abandoned store and living there with the only company of bugs and rats.

He began stealing to survive: food first, but soon he had started stealing money and every expensive item within his reach.   
Until he got a little too reckless and got caught.  
The member of the assassin’s guild he tried to steal from must have seen something in him though, because he decided to bring him back to the guild and train him.

His years at the guild were hard, he trained from dawn to dusk, and sometimes at night as well.   
He still got beaten if he didn’t perform as expected, but at least he didn’t have to worry anymore about going without food for days, or going to sleep at night when it was so cold he was scared he wouldn’t wake up the next morning.

But at least Jaehwan, unlike Hongbin, had learned not to need anyone.  
He wouldn’t trust anyone well before he joined the assassin’s guild, and he then learned to let go of his need for any kind of affection as well. Those feeling wouldn’t help him make it through the day, after all.

That didn’t mean he didn’t feel bad for Hongbin though.  
Hongbin clearly craved someone to love him. Jaehwan knew he wouldn’t be that one, but he really wished Hongbin could find that someone one day. He deserved it.

With these thoughts still on his mind, he fixed the blanket over Hongbin’s shoulders and went to sleep.

\---------------------------------------

Jaehwan opened his eyes and groaned, the morning light filtering through the window almost blinding. He shook Hongbin awake and they got up, going to look for their host.

The old lady was in the kitchen and had cooked them breakfast. She had also prepared fresh food and water for their journey, just like she promised the day before.  
Before they left, she pulled Hongbin close and took his face in his hands: “Look into my eyes, child, I’m going to let you know the way to go to your father’s home.”

Hongbin did what was told, and he immediately saw images flashing through his mind. He saw what looked like a road leading out of the village, and a path winding through the mountains to a small, isolated house.  
“What… what did you do?”  
“I just sent you my memories. We have no maps of our mountains, and I’m too old to draw one for you. This is how we’ve always shared knowledge, other than books.”  
“Thank you… for everything.”  
“Don’t thank me, child. It’s too late for regrets, but I hope I could be of help.”

They both thanked the old woman again, and left.  
Hongbin moved confidently through the village, as if he’d been living there all his life, and took the road out of it at the north end.

They walked briskly, stopping only to have a light lunch when the sun was high in the sky.  
“Thank you for listening to my story last night.” Hongbin said. He hadn’t been talking much since they left the village.  
“You’ve been saying thank you too often lately.” Jaehwan replied with a grin. “But you’re welcome anyway. Do you feel any better?”  
Hongbin nodded with a small smile, but still looked worried.   
Jaehwan had the sudden thought that he missed the cheerful, cheeky Hongbin of the past days, and that he wanted him back.

“Can I ask you something?” he said, pushing those thoughts to the back of his mind. “Why did you agree to my terms when you asked for my help? I mean… if you were looking for your father, why agree to be sold to a brothel? I would have thought you’d want to stay with him.”  
“I started this journey not knowing much.” Hongbin shrugged, “I wasn’t sure my father was still alive, I’m still not sure he’s alive. I wasn’t even sure I’d find this place, to be honest, and I thought that even if it was a brothel, at least…” he trailed off, biting his lip.  
“At least?” Jaehwan urged him, his gaze never leaving Hongbin’s face.  
“At least,” he sighed in the end, “I wouldn’t be alone anymore.”  
He got on his feet and picked up his bag: “Let’s go, we still have a long way before we get there.”

\---------------------------------------

They walked for the rest of the day through the mountains, on what were once well-kept and well-trodden roads but now looked nothing more than simple trails.  
They reached another village right before sunset, and decided to spend the night in one of the abandoned houses that were still standing to protect themselves from the chill mountain air.

“We don’t have much left now,” Hongbin told Jaehwan when they set off again the following morning, “only a couple more hours of walking I think.”  
His predictions were right, as a little before noon they stepped into a small, hidden valley.

The path leading there was overrun with weeds, as if it hadn’t been used in a long time.  
They walked through a thicket of trees and when they emerged from it, they saw a lone house at the far end of the valley.  
“We’re here.” Hongbin whispered, and reached out for Jaehwan with a trembling hand.  
Jaehwan grabbed it and squeezed it hard.

Just like the villages they’ve seen so far, this place too had a cold, abandoned air about it.  
There was no smoke coming out of the chimney, the shutters of the windows were open but the glass was so dirty it was almost impossible to look inside.  
Hongbin, after a few deep breaths, had managed to walk up to the door and knock.  
He waited, hands shaking by his side, but no-one answered.  
Jaehwan then tried the door, and it swung open with a creak.

“Hello?” he shouted as he entered, “Is there anybody?”   
He walked further in, followed by Hongbin. The place was dead silent, dust swirling in small clouds around their ankles as they walked.  
“He’s not here.” Hongbin murmured.  
“Maybe… maybe he moved? Let’s check the rest of the house, maybe we can find something.”

The small house didn’t have many rooms other than the one they came in from: a kitchen and a large bedroom at the back, where they also found a desk covered in papers and journals.  
Jaehwan opened the window to let fresh air and light in as Hongbin picked up a thick envelope from the desk.  
“Jaehwan, I think this is for me.” he said.

The words ‘to my child’ were written on the envelope, and Hongbin sat down heavily on the chair by the desk as he opened it.  
He spent some time reading the letter, and during that time Jaehwan just leaned against the open window, and waited.

When he was done, he looked up at Jaehwan with red-rimmed eyes and handed him the stack of papers.  
“What does it say? Do you want me to read it?” he asked as he took the letter in his hands.  
Hongbin just nodded.

_My dear child_, the letter began, _I’m writing this in the hope that, one day, this will reach you._  
_How weird it is to write you, when I don’t even know how to call you, or if you still live._

The writer, Hongbin’s father, then went on to tell how he had left the mountains for the outside world, looking for a solution to the unknown sickness that was decimating his clan.  
He had suspected that an input of ‘outsiders’ blood’ would make them resistant to the sickness, and wanted to test his theory by having a child with an outside woman.

_What I wasn’t planning, was to fall in love with your mother. She was a beautiful and kind woman, and left her family to live with me._   
_When she agreed to marry me, it was one of the happiest days of my life, but the best was, without a doubt, the day she told me she was with child._

He then wrote of his encounter with a group of soldiers a few months later, and their demand that he’d follow them in battle. They had clearly recognized him for what he was, and weren’t accepting no as an answer.  
Hongbin’s father knew what warlords and their generals did to the people of his clan if they refused their offers, and was scared for his family’s life.  
He didn’t want those soldiers to take revenge on his wife or his unborn child because of him, so he ran away.

The soldiers chased him for longer than he thought, and his only solution had been to go back to the mountains, his heart heavy at the thought of the family he had left behind, his wife only a few months from delivering their child.

_The elders admitted that I was right, but forbade me to leave the mountains again, too scared of our scarce numbers and of the angered warlord that could still be looking for me._   
_Our laws and our powers, they don’t allow us to go against the ruling of an assembly of our kind, and all I could do was to leave the rest of my people and hide here, bitter and full of regrets._

_My child, I am so sorry. I wish I could have been there with you both._   
_I can only hope that you came looking for your heritage, and won’t be too angry with me for what I’ve done._   
_I would have loved to see you with my own eyes, talk to you, teach you everything you needed to know about our clan, but the sickness finally caught up with me._

_I had thought I was immune to it, but I can feel it in my bones, an inexorable tiredness that won’t ever leave me._   
_I fear I don’t have much to live anymore, I will leave this house and find a resting place soon._

He concluded the letter telling his child to take the journals that he had filled with teachings on how to deal with his powers. As he couldn’t be able to do it in person, at least they could be a surrogate of sorts.

When he reached the end, Jaehwan lowered the letter on his lap and looked at Hongbin: he was still sitting by the desk, lazily going through the journals they had found.  
“Hongbin…”  
“She was wrong… He made a poor choice in life and she was wrong. In the end, we all suffered.”

“What do you want to do now?” Jaehwan asked as he folded the letter and put it back inside the envelope.  
“Let’s grab my father’s journals and leave, I don’t want to stay here tonight.”

Jaehwan left Hongbin in the bedroom and went to check the rest of the house, but didn’t find anything of interest.  
They left with just the journals and the letter stacked into their bags, and made their way back to the village and the house they had spent the previous night in.

Soon after they arrived, heavy rain started to fall so, with nothing else to do, they began reading through the journals.  
They were filled with history of the demon clan, and whatever notion Hongbin’s father thought could be useful to help his child cope with his powers.  
“If only I had known this as a child, it would have saved me a lot of panicking… Apparently we half-demons go through the changes in pain because our ‘outsider blood’ tries to fight them.” Hongbin muttered.  
“Hey.” Jaehwan interrupted him, pointing at a passage in the journal he was reading. “It says here that demons are by nature very skilled in battles, both bare-handed and with all kind of weapons. Their ability to read minds is valuable, but it’s when they kill that they become unstoppable, and only one demon can make the difference in a war. The more they kill, the stronger they become, that’s why they’re so highly sought after by warlords.”

Hongbin leaned on Jaehwan’s shoulder and rubbed his tired eyes: “I don’t want to kill or fight anyone…”  
“And you shouldn’t. I hope you won’t ever have anyone’s blood on your hands.”   
Jaehwan closed the journal and let his head fall back against the wall.  
They were both sitting on the bed, reading by candle light. The rain was still falling hard outside, and thunder could be heard in the distance, slowly getting closer.   
Jaehwan wondered if they should expect a nasty storm later that night.

They just sat there in silence, listening to the soothing sound of the raindrops hitting the shutters, till Hongbin dropped all the journals on the floor and turned around, straddling Jaehwan.  
“Hongbin? What’s wrong?”  
Hongbin was hunched over Jaehwan, face hidden against his neck: “We’re almost at the end of the journey. You’ve kept your end of the deal, and I will keep mine. Before we part though…” his fingers found their way under Jaehwan’s shirt, ghosting over his warm skin, while he mouthed along his neck.   
“Before we part, I want you to take me again.” Hongbin whispered in his ear, and Jaehwan gasped softly.

Hongbin traced Jaehwan’s lips with his finger, a serious expression on his face: “Jaehwan… will you kiss me? At least once?”  
“Hongbin…” Jaehwan frowned, hands gently grabbing Hongbin’s wrists and moving his hands away. “I can’t.”  
“Why can’t you? You’d kiss me anywhere but not on my lips…”  
“Hongbin, I can’t. You kiss lovers, you kiss family on the lips… and I’m neither. I’m… no good, Hongbin.”

Hongbin was scowling, and wouldn’t look at him, so Jaehwan tried again: “I’m sorry, I probably should have kept my distance… this infatuation-”  
“Infatuation?” Hongbin interrupted him with a scoff, “Do you really think I’m such a child?”  
“Hongbin, listen…”  
“No, _you_ will listen to me now, Jaehwan.”

The swiftness it all happened reminded Jaehwan of his first encounter with Hongbin: in mere instants he found himself lying on his back, Hongbin towering over him and holding Jaehwan’s wrists over his head.  
Jaehwan tried to break free, but Hongbin was sitting across his lap, making him unable to move.

Jaehwan cursed. He had completely forgotten how strong Hongbin was.  
“I like you, Jaehwan.” Hongbin whispered, his voice sad. “I thought you liked me too.”  
“Hongbin, let me go…”

Hongbin’s eyes flashed red for a moment, reverting to brown immediately, except for a red ring now remaining around the outer edge of his irises.  
“Hongbin, you promised…!”  
“Tell me what you truly think, Jaehwan.” Hongbin’s voice was low as he bent down to kiss Jaehwan’s neck. “Don’t you like me?”

“I like you too.” Jaehwan once again couldn’t stop the words from escaping his mouth.   
“Why then? Why can’t I ever be happy? You’ll be leaving me soon, no-one ever stays with me…”  
“You deserve better, Hongbin.” Jaehwan was still trying to fight against Hongbin’s powers, but it was so hard… “I’m no good, what kind of life could I give you?”  
“What if I said I didn’t care? We… we would make it work somehow, Jaehwan.”

Hongbin held Jaehwan’s wrist with just one hand, the other going under Jaehwan’s shirt and pushing the cloth up, baring his stomach.  
“Hongbin… stop it.”  
“Give me what I want, Jaehwan. Why is it so hard?”

Jaehwan squeezed his eyes shut. His body shivered under Hongbin’s touch, and it wasn’t because of pleasure this time.  
I can’t, I can’t… Jaehwan thought, I’m… scared.

All of a sudden, Hongbin’s hands let him go.  
Jaehwan opened his eyes and saw Hongbin looking down on him with wide eyes.  
“You’re scared… of me?”  
He jumped off the bed and grabbed his bag that was at the foot of the bed.  
“Gods… what was I doing? I’m so sorry, Jaehwan!”  
He quickly went out of the room and closed the door behind him.

“Hongbin!” Jaehwan shouted, trying to follow him, but the door wouldn’t open. Hongbin was keeping it shut from the other side.  
“I’ll be sleeping in the other room.” Hongbin’s voice was faint and broken. “Don’t worry, I won’t leave. I’m so, so sorry…”

Jaehwan stepped back and lay down on the bed again.  
His mind was a mess: why did this have to happen? Why did Hongbin react that way?  
Was he really scared of Hongbin? Maybe, at that moment, but… that wasn’t what he had meant.

He kept tossing and turning all night, the rain and the loud thunder of the storm the only companions for his troubled thoughts.  
He got up as soon as he saw the morning light through the shutters and ran out of the bedroom, letting out a breath he didn’t know he was holding when he saw Hongbin sleeping on the kitchen floor.  
“Wake up,” he called as he knelt down by the sleeping boy, “Hongbin, wake up.”

When Hongbin opened his eyes and saw Jaehwan, he frowned.  
“Jaehwan… about last night…”  
“Yes, we need to talk about last night.” Jaehwan said, serious. He stood, and helped Hongbin get on his feet.  
“I apologize… What I did was unforgivable,” Hongbin began, looking down at the floor. “I’d understand if you didn’t want to talk to me anymore. I’ll do anything you want once we get out of here, don’t worry.”

Jaehwan put his hand on Hongbin’s cheek and tilted his head up so that he was looking at him: “What you did was wrong, but I accept your apology. I’ve thought a lot, last night, and I think I need to apologize to you as well.”  
“You? What for?” Hongbin frowned, confused.  
“Because…” he sighed, “I’m not really good with words, or with expressing my feelings. Feelings were always useless in my life, and… And I wasn’t scared of you, last night.”  
“You weren’t?” Now Hongbin was looking straight into Jaehwan’s eyes.  
“Alright, maybe a little. But that’s not the point. What I mean is, I was scared because I don’t want to trust anyone, never wanted to trust anyone, but I do trust you, so much, and… and this is so weird…”

Hongbin had still a confused look on his face, but his lips were curled up in the tiniest of the smiles: “What are you trying to say, Jaehwan?”  
“You’re truly a demon.” Jaehwan scowled, and Hongbin’s smile grew.

The hand that was still cupping Hongbin’s cheek slid to the back of his neck and pulled him forward, pressing their lips together.  
Jaehwan wasn’t a very experienced kisser, but Hongbin didn’t seem to mind, leading the kiss and letting out small sounds as their tongues met, hands buried in Jaehwan’s hair to hold him close.

“I might fuck this up.” Jaehwan whispered when they finally broke the kiss. “I… I don’t really know how these things go.”  
Hongbin chuckled: “Neither do I. We’ll work this out, I’m sure.”

Hongbin kept placing tiny kisses on Jaehwan’s plump lips, occasionally nipping on them just to hear Jaehwan groan low in his throat.  
“I’m glad we made up. But…” he kissed Jaehwan open-mouthed, slipping his tongue between his lips and retreating immediately after with a grin. “Can we make up some more?”

Jaehwan snorted: “I was wondering where that cheeky kid I used to know went.”  
His hands slid down Hongbin’s sides to rest on his hips, pulling their bodies together.  
Hongbin’s smile was wide now, fully showing his dimples: “Why, were you missing him?”  
“Maybe…” Jaehwan grinned back.

They walked back to the bedroom a little awkwardly because Hongbin refused to let Jaehwan go, and fell on the bed in a heap of tangled limbs.  
Hongbin hummed in pleasure when they took off their shirts and their bare skin finally touched: “You know,” he whispered as he brushed his fingers along Jaehwan’s breastbone, “I kinda missed this.”  
“Hmm.” was Jaehwan’s only reply as he grinned and leaned down for another kiss.

He pulled the strings at the front of Hongbin’s pants and pushed them down together with his underpants, his own clothes following right after.  
“Ah…” Hongbin panted as Jaehwan sucked a red patch on his chest. “The salve… it’s in the other room…”  
“Never mind that for now.” Jaehwan told him.

He sat up, leaning back against the wall. His hand went to his hard cock, stroking it lazily and grinning when he saw Hongbin moan at the view.  
“Come here.” he smiled, and wrapped his arm around Hongbin’s waist when he sat in his lap, straddling him.

Jaehwan’s long fingers closed around both cocks, swiping the heads with his thumb to smear any drop of precum over the shafts to slick them up.  
“Jaehwan…” Hongbin groaned, thrusting his hips upwards into Jaehwan’s fist.  
He leaned down and kissed Jaehwan: it was wet and messy, but neither of them complained.

Jaehwan looked at Hongbin and smiled at how wrecked he looked: he had flushed cheeks and half-lidded eyes, while his parted lips were letting out soft pants.   
As Jaehwan began moving his hand faster, Hongbin groaned and tightened his hold on Jaehwan’s shoulder, as if he would collapse without some kind of support.

“Is this alright? Do you like it?” Jaehwan asked, eyes never leaving Hongbin’s face.   
Hongbin just nodded, then put one of his hands on top of Jaehwan’s and around their cocks.   
He squeezed and moved faster as their cocks slid along each other: “Like this…” he panted against Jaehwan’s lips before kissing him again.

They came soon after, moaning in each other’s mouth and making a mess all over their hands.  
Outside, the rain had begun to fall again.

They used the bedsheet to clean up and then lay back in bed: Hongbin was wrapped all over Jaehwan, who didn’t seem to mind as he traced circles on Hongbin’s back with his fingers.  
“I don’t want to travel in the rain.” Hongbin whined as he listened to the rain fall hard.  
“We can wait.” Jaehwan replied with a yawn, “We have enough food.”  
Hongbin nodded as he huddled closer to Jaehwan: “Good. I’m also not done with you, just so you know.”  
Jaehwan laughed, and just told Hongbin to rest up for a while. They had plenty of time.

\---------------------------------------

By the time they left the following morning, the rain had stopped and a pale sun was peeking from behind a few stray clouds.

They decided not to go back to the main village this time, the roads were still too muddy and slippery from the rain, which would slow them down and make the journey even longer.  
Instead, they decided to follow the map that Hongbin’s father had drawn in his journal, and use another road out of the mountains, closer to where they were now.

The new path ran along and a few metres above the course of a mountain river, which now was swollen because of the heavy rains of the past days.  
Just like the beginning of their journey, a thick fog began to cover the path, making them stop so Hongbin could take Jaehwan’s hand and lead the way.

The river roared angrily below them, and even if Jaehwan trusted Hongbin completely, he couldn’t help but sigh in relief when the fog first thinned and then disappeared, and he could see again.

Instead of letting Jaehwan’s hand go, Hongbin intertwined their fingers together, squeezing.  
“If the map’s right, we should reach the woods at the foot of the mountain before evening. Where do we go from there?” he asked.  
“What do you mean?” Jaehwan said with a straight face. “We’re going to the Blooming Rose. I’m pretty sure they’ll pay handsomely for someone like you.”  
“What…?” Hongbin’s eyes widened in shock for a moment.  
Jaehwan then grinned and Hongbin punched him in the arm: “Idiot, that wasn’t funny.” he grumbled.

“Well, aren’t I glad to see you two are having fun together.” someone suddenly said.  
Jaehwan and Hongbin froze as two figures clad in black stepped out from a sharp bend in the path a few steps ahead that was hiding them from view.

“I’m so sorry, Jaehwan…” one of them said as he unsheathed his thin dagger. “Please don’t take it personally.”  
Jaehwan took out his own blade and took a step in front of Hongbin, as if to shield him: “Hakyeon.”


	9. Chapter 9

Hakyeon walked slowly towards Jaehwan, a sad smile twisting his handsome features: “I was really hoping it wouldn’t be you two…”

“What’s the meaning of this?” Jaehwan growled, never taking his eyes off Hakyeon and watching his every move.  
“They’re keeping track of anyone climbing the mountain. Someone saw you and hired the guild to take care of you. Some of our... clients are not happy that not all demons are dead and want them out of the picture, simple as that. You know the game.” Hakyeon told him, shrugging.

The second assassin stepped forward, a frown on his face: “Hakyeon, we shouldn’t be telling him all this.”  
“It’s alright, Sanghyuk.” Hakyeon smiled, not turning to look at him, “Jaehwan and I are old friends. I owe him this much at least.”  
“Demons are dying up there in their village, Hakyeon. There are but a handful of old people who will die soon. Hongbin hasn’t done anything, and wants nothing to do with wars and violence, can’t you let us go?”  
Jaehwan was still talking in a very calm voice, eyes moving quickly from Hakyeon to his partner, Sanghyuk.

Behind him, Hongbin had grabbed the short knife he kept in his bag and stood a half-step from him, alert. His irises had a red edge on them.  
“They’re planning to flank us, striking quickly. Hakyeon will fight you, and the other guy is supposed to come at me and finish me off.” Hongbin whispered in Jaehwan’s ear.   
He’s already making the best out of his powers, Jaehwan thought with a smile, nodding.

“Do you think you can take him on?” Jaehwan asked quietly.  
Hongbin paused for a moment: “I’ll try.”  
“You better make it, ‘cause I’m not leaving this place without you.” was Jaehwan’s reply before he sprung forward.

Hakyeon quickly parried Jaehwan’s attack with his own dagger, and pushed him off him.   
Jaehwan knew he wouldn’t be able to take Hakyeon by surprise with his move, his old friend was too experienced for tricks like that, but at least he could keep him busy and prevent him helping the other assassin.

“Let us go, Hakyeon.” Jaehwan tried again, while swinging his arm in front of him, his blade missing Hakyeon’s chest by mere inches.  
They both knew it wasn’t a serious move, they were still things to be said between them after all.  
“You know I can’t.” Hakyeon thrust his dagger in an upward arc, and Jaehwan jumped back.  
“Why not? I did it.”  
“Yes, you did.” Hakyeon smirked. “And almost died.”  
“Then leave and send someone else, I don’t want to fight you. Besides, could you really kill me?”

Suddenly, Hakyeon’s gaze hardened: “This is business, Jaehwan. We’re _paid_ to do this, we can’t choose.”  
“You should!” Jaehwan still pleaded, voice rising as he prepared for the next attack. “This is just plain murder, Hongbin hasn’t done anything and we both know it!”

A faint sound coming from behind them got their attention: the second assassin, Sanghyuk, was kneeled on the rocky path, and he was pressing his hand on a cut on his forearm. Hongbin was standing a few steps from him, his short knife still clutched in his hand and his irises rimmed with red.

“Shit.” Hakyeon hissed, and in a couple of steps he had reached his partner, helping him up. “Sanghyuk, what’s happening? Why haven’t you finished him yet?”  
“Hakyeon… I can’t hit him. It’s like he knows exactly what I’m about to do even before I do it.”

Hakyeon gritted his teeth and glared at them. He growled and then launched himself at Hongbin, slashing his dagger wildly in front of him.  
He clearly took Hongbin by surprise, as the demon took a step back, and then another, trying to avoid his hits.

“Hongbin!” Jaehwan yelled.   
He tried to run to him, but Sanghyuk blocked his path: “Oh no, I don’t think so.” he grinned.  
“Let’s play.” he went on, slowly moving so that Jaehwan had no room to run past him to help Hongbin. “I’m really curious to see if you’re as good as Hakyeon told me.”  
“You still have a long way to go to be a match for me, kid.”

They began exchanging blow after blow, their weapons clashing together.  
Jaehwan parried every hit that Sanghyuk threw his way, but the same happened the other way round.  
“Hakyeon taught you well.” Jaehwan chuckled. He almost looked like he was having fun.  
Sanghyuk grinned back: “You’re still a legend of sorts at the guild, you know that? But Hakyeon’s better than you.”

The assassin lunged at him, and Jaehwan was forced to take a step back to avoid his blade, thus getting closer to the edge of the path, the river still roaring angrily at the bottom of the cliff.  
After a quick look behind his shoulder, Jaehwan quickly stepped away from that dangerous spot, dodging Sanghyuk’s blade as he sprinted past him.

Sanghyuk spun around, reaching out his hand and grabbing the sleeve of his shirt, pulling Jaehwan back.  
Jaehwan growled loud, annoyed, as he twisted his body to free himself, his dagger barely missing Sanghyuk’s cheek.

The assassin gasped, surprised by the fast movement that he almost didn’t see, and took a step back.  
Jaehwan pressed on, spurred by the momentum, pushing Sanghyuk back as he desperately tried to avoid getting hit.

“Not so cocky now, eh?” Jaehwan smirked.  
Sanghyuk gritted his teeth, but couldn’t do anything more than keep defending himself from Jaehwan’s dagger.

A cry suddenly rang out, and Jaehwan turned around to see Hongbin pushed against the rock wall.  
He was clutching his upper arm with his other hand, a crimson stain spreading on the cloth of his shirt under his fingers.

“Hongbin!” Jaehwan cried out, his body already moving in his direction, completely forgetting the enemy in front of him.  
Sanghyuk wasn’t about to let this chance go to waste though, and stuck his blade out, stabbing Jaehwan to the side and slashing upwards, creating a cut that wasn’t too deep but long enough to bleed profusely.

Cursing and pressing a hand to his wound, Jaehwan tried to run to Hongbin, but Hakyeon stood in his way, looking at him with wide eyes.  
“Give up already!” he shouted, pointing the tip of his dagger at Hongbin’s throat.  
“I can’t. You know that, Hakyeon. I’m not going to give up till we get out of here safe. All of us, if possible.”

“Trust me, I’ll get you out of here.” Jaehwan looked at Hongbin and gave him a small smile, before shifting his stare on Hakyeon: “Hakyeon… we don’t have to fight each other. Please.”  
“I must say I’m almost jealous… You never cared about me like that, no matter how I wished for it…” Hakyeon said as he looked back at Jaehwan. His voice had an almost sad tone to it.  
“Hakyeon…”  
“No matter, it’s all in the past now.” Hakyeon went on, strengthening his grip on the dagger. Hongbin let out a faint whine as the blade pressed slightly against his skin.

Jaehwan tensed, ready to spring into action.  
Instead of moving forward, though, he ducked and took a step back. He watched as Sanghyuk stabbed the air where his chest would have been, then quickly grabbed his wrist and twisted his arm behind his back, squeezing as hard as he could.

Sanghyuk yelped in pain, and let his dagger fall on the ground.  
“How did you…?” he groaned. He tried to pull free, but Jaehwan had an iron grip on him, his other arm wrapping around his neck, the sharp edge of his blade against his neck to prevent any further movement.  
“Do you really think I wouldn’t hear you? Remember who you’re dealing with, kid.”

After a quick look over his shoulder, Jaehwan began walking backwards, pulling Sanghyuk with him, his eyes never leaving Hakyeon’s.  
He stopped only when he was on the edge of the cliff.  
“Let him go, Hakyeon, and I won’t throw your precious rookie in the river below.”

“Who says I care about what happens to him?” Hakyeon said, trying to sound casual, but Jaehwan just chuckled.  
“Hakyeon, I probably know you a lot better than you think. Let’s end this charade, alright? Give me back Hongbin, and I’ll let your dear Sanghyuk go.”

“Jaehwan… this is not like you, do you really care about Hongbin that much?”  
Jaehwan pressed his lips together for a moment before grinning: “Yes, I do. People change, Hakyeon.”

Hakyeon’s gaze moved between Sanghyuk and Jaehwan as he thought about the deal, but then he sighed: “Alright. Get back here now. Both of you.”  
He lowered his dagger to show Jaehwan that he meant it, and waited.

Jaehwan slowly lowered his blade as well, and lightly pushed Sanghyuk, urging him forward.  
He still had his hand around Sanghyuk’s wrist when the edge of the path crumbled and collapsed under their feet.  
With a startled cry, Jaehwan fell backwards and down the cliff, pulling Sanghyuk with him.

“Jaehwan!” “Sanghyuk!”  
Both Hongbin and Hakyeon crossed the path to where the other two were standing mere seconds ago as fast as they could, but when they stood looking down the cliff all they could see was the frothing river below them.

“Let’s go, we need to find them!” Hongbin said as he darted down the path, but he stopped as he saw Hakyeon standing frozen over the cliff and looking down.  
“Hakyeon.” Hongbin grabbed the assassin by his arm and shook him. “We have to go, snap out of it!”  
With a start, Hakyeon looked back at Hongbin, and nodded.

They rushed down the winding path and out of the mountain, heading straight for the river.  
The water roared and flowed fast before them, bits of wood and plants floating in and out of the surface.

They moved swiftly along the muddy bank following the stream, eyes glued to the water surface for any sign of their friends.  
Hongbin’s heart skipped a beat every time he thought he saw something appear between the rough waves, but it was never them in the end.

“I can’t see them.” Hakyeon complained after some minutes of fruitless search, “We’ll never find them at this rate!”  
“No, maybe I… I can try.” Hongbin replied.  
He cursed himself under his breath: in his panic he had completely forgotten about his powers!  
He closed his eyes and searched for the missing men, praying that it wouldn’t be too late.

At first, he couldn’t sense anything, not even animals.   
He resumed walking down the bank, stopping every few steps to cast out his power, until he was able to sense something just out of reach of his power limits, which made it impossible for him to distinguish anything.  
“On the bend up ahead!” he shouted at Hakyeon as he started running. “There’s someone there, let’s hope it’s them!” 

They ran as fast as the slippery ground allowed them, and when they reached the next river bend, Hakyeon yelled: “There!”  
Sanghyuk was sprawled on the sandy shore, unconscious.

Hakyeon was the first to reach him. He kneeled beside him and shook him lightly: “Sanghyuk! Sanghyuk wake up!”  
Hongbin just stood next to them, brows knit with worry: “Is he…?”  
“No.” Hakyeon shook his head, “I think he’s just fainted.”

Sanghyuk suddenly opened his eyes and began coughing. Hakyeon turned him over and patted him on his back as he spit out water.  
“Sanghyuk, are you alright?”  
Sanghyuk, still coughing, nodded, and Hakyeon sighed in relief.

Hongbin wished he could share Hakyeon’s feelings, but… he couldn’t see Jaehwan anywhere.  
Sanghyuk was the only one on the shore, and he couldn’t sense anyone else around.  
“Sanghyuk,” he murmured, his voice cracking a little, “where’s Jaehwan?”

Sanghyuk was now sitting, Hakyeon still rubbing his back, and looked away: “I don’t know. The current was too strong, and I was about to drown. Jaehwan too, but… he noticed I was in trouble and tried to save me.”  
“Where is he now, Sanghyuk?” Hongbin asked again, “What happened to him?”

Sanghyuk shook his head: “I don’t know… he pushed me towards the shore, but before I could help him, the river took him again. I was so tired and cold and… I’m sorry.”  
“No, it’s alright…” Hongbin sighed, “But I have to find him, he’s hurt as well.”

“We should help you.” Hakyeon said as he pulled Sanghyuk to his feet.  
“No need. No offence, but I actually think I have more chances to find him on my own. And Sanghyuk needs to rest.”  
Hakyeon frowned slightly, but didn’t reply, knowing Hongbin was speaking the truth.

“You should be mad at us.” he said instead after a moment.  
Hongbin smiled bitterly: “Would that change things? I know Jaehwan thought of you as his only friend, I don’t think he’d be mad at you now.”  
“Thank you.” Hakyeon nodded, “Then I guess we’ll go back to the guild, I think it’s time I should try and fix things there as well.”

“Hakyeon, are you sure?” Sanghyuk asked, a worried expression on his face.  
“Yes. I… I had similar thoughts since Jaehwan left, but I’ve always been a coward about this.”  
He chuckled low in his throat: “I had already lost him once but just went on with my life. I didn’t think it would be so hard for me to lose him again. I didn’t… want to think I still cared for him. I wish I had realized it sooner…” He bowed his head low, “I’m so sorry, for what it’s worth.”

“It’s alright, you just did what you thought you had to.”  
“Still…” Hakyeon took a deep breath, and looked at the river. “We’ll accompany you for a while, then it’ll be up to you.”  
“Yes, thank you. I’m going to keep looking until I find him, I swear.”

They set off together, walking along the river until the two assassins had to part ways with Hongbin.  
“What are you going to do?” Hakyeon asked.  
“I’m sure he’s still alive, I’m willing to follow the river to the sea if I need to. After that… I’m not sure, I’ll think about it when the time comes.”

The assassin smiled for the first time that day, even if it wasn’t a happy smile: “You two are really alike, you know that? Jaehwan, he never wanted to give up on anything… not then, not now. He didn’t want to give you up either, Hongbin, while I… I always gave up on him. I never deserved him.”  
“Hakyeon…”  
“Don’t mind me, I’m rambling. Make sure to find him, alright? We’ll see you soon.”

Hongbin nodded and stood by the shore of the river as the other two men walked away, waving briefly as they disappeared in the distance, the sky taking on a pink shade as the sun began to set.


	10. Chapter 10

A loud banging at the door woke Hongbin up with a start.  
He casted his powers out as he jumped from his bed, only to smile as he recognized his visitors.

“No need to break into my house, gentlemen, I’ve heard you.” he said as he opened the door wide.  
On the other side, Sanghyuk grinned rather sheepishly as he held a lockpick in his hand.

Hongbin stepped to the side, and allowed him to walk in, followed by Hakyeon.  
“Long time no see, Hongbin.” the assassin greeted him.  
“Hakyeon, I saw you only a couple of months ago.” Hongbin smiled pleasantly, his dimples showing.  
Hakyeon just shrugged, and smiled back.

Hongbin closed the door and followed them further inside the house, heading to his pantry. He took out bread and cheese, offered them to his guests and proceeded to slice some for himself when they refused.  
“To what do I owe this visit?” he asked as he leaned against the kitchen table, munching on a piece of bread.  
“Just checking up on you.” Hakyeon replied, the smile still plastered on his face.

“I’m fine, as you can see.” came the reply, pleasant as always.  
“Are you, really? How about… him?”  
Hongbin put his food down on the table with a grimace, as if it tasted bad all of a sudden.  
“You mean Jaehwan.” he said, his lips pressed together.  
“Who else.” he heard Sanghyuk scoff softly, but pretended not to hear him.  
“It’s been six months since that day, Hongbin.” Hakyeon went on carefully. “And you haven’t found a single trace of him. Shouldn’t you give up maybe?”

Hongbin closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He knew all of this well enough, to be honest, he told himself the same thing more than once, during those nights he couldn’t fall asleep no matter how hard he tried.  
But…  
“I can’t, Hakyeon. Thank you for worrying about me, I mean it, but I just can’t.” he smiled crookedly, “You can laugh if you want, but I still think he’s out there somewhere.”

Hakyeon didn’t reply and just nodded slightly: “I see… Well, I kinda knew you’d say that, but I thought I’d try anyway.”  
He then cocked his head, and his lips quirked up in an amused grin: “By the way, are you still working at that sinful place?”  
“You mean the Blooming Rose?”

Hongbin saw how Sanghyuk’s head had perked up at the name and laughed.  
“Yes, I mean _the brothel_.” Hakyeon stressed the last part, glaring at his partner, who had the decency to look almost ashamed. Almost.   
Hongbin just laughed harder.  
“Don’t say it like it’s some evil place. They pay well, and the people are nice. Also… I have a reason why I work there.”  
“Does it have to do with Jaehwan somehow?”  
When Hongbin nodded, Hakyeon huffed, but it was good-humoured: “Very well then, I won’t say anything more.”

“What about you?” Hongbin asked, “Did you really come here just to ask how I was holding up?”  
A chuckle escaped Hakyeon’s lips: “No. I came to tell you that you’re safe now, the guild won’t come after you anymore, nor we will take any contract against your people anymore.”  
“Is that true? How…”  
“It wasn’t that easy, you know?” Hakyeon pursed his lips in an exaggerated, fake pout, making Sanghyuk roll his eyes. “The guildmaster wouldn’t listen to anything I said at first… so annoying. So I became guildmaster myself and made new rules.”

“You? Guildmaster?” Hongbin’s eyes were as wide as plates. “How did it happen?”  
This time it was Sanghyuk’s turn to reply: “The usual method of course, dead men’s shoes.”  
He grinned, and it looked wicked and proud at the same time: “He may not look like it, but Hakyeon’s always been one of the top assassins at the guild.”

“Guildmaster, uh?” Hongbin smiled and looked at Hakyeon as if seeing him under a new light. “Must be a dangerous job.”  
“Don’t worry, I have the best bodyguard.” Hakyeon looked over his shoulder at Sanghyuk and winked. “Loyal and very much… invested in my well-being.”

Sanghyuk cleared his throat in embarrassment, trying to hide his reddening face behind his hands and cursing Hakyeon, who just laughed.  
Hongbin looked at them fondly, and then joined in the teasing.

They left soon after, since paying visit to Hongbin wasn’t their only reason to stop in that city.  
Hongbin didn’t ask much about their business there, he knew it wasn’t really… healthy, and so just walked them as far as he could before parting ways and heading into work.

Hongbin thought it was easy to laugh now, with those two.  
Right after Jaehwan had disappeared in the swollen river, he had been looking for him like a madman, without any rest, and had reached the sea before he finally gave in to grieving, having found no trace of his companion.

Hakyeon and Sanghyuk had appeared before his eyes once again then, offering him unexpected support.  
Hongbin decided to go back to the edge of the forest and move into the big city of Rivailie, where he got lucky enough to find a job as a bartender and occasional bouncer at one of its most famous brothels, the Blooming Rose.

He couldn’t say why, but Hongbin was certain Jaehwan was alive, and one day he’d come looking for him, he just _knew_ it.   
And Hongbin was making sure Jaehwan could find him in the one place they both knew of.

Jaehwan wouldn’t forget.  
And so Hongbin had been waiting.

When he entered the Blooming Rose, he suddenly felt soft, warm breasts press against his chest, and bejeweled arms wrap around his neck.  
“Hongbin, love, I missed you so much!” a cheerful voice rang in his ear.

Hongbin smiled and detached himself from the young woman who had launched herself at him: “Hello, Mira. Did you sleep well?”  
“Could have been better,” she purred, “if only you had come to my room last night.”

“Just give up on Hongbin, Mira. He’s not interested.” a male voice spoke up from behind Hongbin.  
Mira glared at the newcomer, a young male dressed in black with a rather extravagant golden earring on his left ear, and huffed: “And I bet you’re not saying this because Hongbin turned you down as well, are you, Saeran?  
The man, Saeran, just laughed: “I’m not jealous, if that’s what you’re saying. Hongbin turned down _all_ of us, sweetheart. Now let him go, before the boss yells at you.”

Mira sighed, and stepped away from Hongbin, who was chuckling: “Sorry guys, you know I’m taken. And I don’t plan on cheating on him.”  
“Well, this lucky bastard better come back fast, or I’m going to snatch you away.” Mira grinned and winked, and then she was gone.

By now Hongbin was used to the boys and girls working at the Blooming Rose flirting with him, and sometimes trying to get him into their beds.  
He’d been honoured, but always refused their offers. He couldn’t do that when Jaehwan still was all that he could think of.

Work at the brothel was pretty easy: his main job was to be the bartender, and sometimes he’d have to act as a bouncer and placate some fights, or ‘persuade’ some unruly clients to calm down.  
His friendly face and smile were a big help behind the bar, but it was his unsuspected strength that made him good at what he did, and respected.  
Of course, he had to be careful in hiding his true nature, he didn’t want to risk being found out by an angry mob that still held grudges against demons and chased out of town.  
Or worse.

\--------------------------------------------

Another week rolled by lazily after Hakyeon’s and Sanghyuk’s visit.  
Hongbin was finally going back home in the quiet hours before dawn, after his job at the brothel was done.

He was tired, there had been some annoying idiots who thought they could do whatever they pleased with the girls, and Hongbin had to punch some sense into them.  
Now he only wanted to get to bed and sleep non-stop till the afternoon.

It was probably why he hadn’t noticed it till he was almost home.  
His steps slowed down when he finally realized that someone was following him, hiding in the shadows of the many back alleys opening along the street.  
Hongbin cast his power out as he had done countless times before to figure out who he was facing and froze, his own legs almost giving out under him.

He turned to his left, where a narrow, dark alley opened between two tall buildings, and took a slow step in its direction. And then another, stopping when he saw something move behind a crate.  
“Jaehwan…?” he whispered in the silence of the street, his heart racing madly in his chest.

There was no reply for what felt like an eternity, but then slowly, unhurriedly, Jaehwan stepped out from the shadows, standing in front of Hongbin like a ghost. He remained at the entrance of the alley though, as if ready to disappear once again if he needed to.  
“Hey.” he just said, the hint of a smile on his lips.

Hongbin wanted to run and embrace Jaehwan, kiss him right there and then, but his legs felt leaden, his feet dragging on the ground in slow steps.  
“Is that really you?” he asked, a strangled laughter spilling from his mouth, “I knew you were alive…”  
Jaehwan’s eye narrowed as his smile grew wider: “You can touch if you don’t believe your eyes.”

Hongbin didn’t need to be told twice: finding his strength again, he reached Jaehwan’s side with a few long strides and tentatively placed a hand on his chest, as if testing that he was really there.  
When he felt a firm body under his fingers, he raised his other hand to Jaehwan’s jaw, then his hair.  
“It’s you…” he laughed, breathless.  
“It’s me.” Jaehwan replied, still smiling, one hand resting lightly on Hongbin’s waist, the other covering the one on his chest.

“What happened? Where have you been till now?” Hongbin asked, still patting Jaehwan’s body with his hands.  
“I’ll tell you, but can we go somewhere else? The middle of a street is not exactly… the place where I wanted to meet you.”  
Hongbin nodded, and took a step back, breaking contact with Jaehwan: “Oh, of course, you’re right. Let’s go back to my place, it’s not far from here.”

Hongbin’s house was small, a little wooden building on the outskirts of the city with just one floor and a little, unkempt patch of grass at the front.  
Hongbin stopped by the door and searched his pocket for the key.  
Then searched the pouch tied to his waist.  
And checked if he maybe hung it on a string under his shirt and then forgot about it.

“What’s the matter?” Jaehwan asked from behind him, stepping forward and to his side.  
“I… uhm… I think I’ve misplaced my key. It probably fell at work…”  
Jaehwan gave him his best unimpressed look: “Seriously, Hongbin?”  
“Not my fault, alright?” Hongbin grumbled, “I had to rough up some idiots, it probably fell then.”  
Jaehwan sighed, then took something from his pouch: “Well, nothing we can do about it, I guess.”

“What are we going to do now?” Hongbin asked, face blank as he looked at Jaehwan.  
“Now, we enter.” He grinned as he kneeled in front of the door. “I’m a thief, remember?”  
“Are those… lockpicks?”  
Jaehwan just gave him a quick glance: “Are you going to lecture me? It’s this or breaking a window.”  
Hongbin shut up, and Jaehwan set to work, standing up with a triumphant look on his face mere moments later: “Done. Let’s go inside.”

Once inside, Jaehwan stopped in the middle of the room, scanning the rest of the house as if expecting someone to walk in on them from another room: “You… live here alone?”  
This time, it was Hongbin’s turn to shoot him an unimpressed look: “Do you really think I’d be working at the Blooming Rose if I lived with someone else? At the same brothel you threatened to sell me to more than once?”

Jaehwan looked down at the floor, but the corners of his lips were curved upwards in a small, satisfied smile. Hongbin felt his chest ache with longing as he looked at him.  
“Jaehwan…” he heard himself say, “Did you… did you come looking for me? This is not a coincidence, right?”  
“No,” Jaehwan replied quiety, “I thought that I might find you here, it was just a matter of which brothel to check first.”

Hongbin’s cheeks hurt as he tried to contain his smile, he still needed to know some things before letting himself be happy about that reunion: “I’ve missed you. I’ve been looking for you all over…”  
“I’m so sorry, Hongbin.” 

Jaehwan took a step closer to him, looking apologetic: “The last thing I remember was trying to push Sanghyuk towards the bank of the river, then I got dragged underwater. I think I fainted, and when I woke up I was in a bed, bandaged up. A farmer and his wife found me and nursed me back to life. With all the cuts and bruises I had, and the blood loss from the fight, they didn’t think I would make it, to be honest.”

“But I followed the river all the way to the sea, and didn’t find you, even with my powers…” Hongbin frowned.  
“That’s because those farmers were on their way home, past the woods and far from the river. They were travelling on a cart, I guess we missed each other.”  
“I see… And… are you healed now?”

Hongbin looked like he was aching to make sure with his own hands that Jaehwan was fine, and Jaehwan smiled: “Yes. I’ve been for some time now. I had to repay them for their kindness, you know, I couldn’t leave them right away.”  
Hongbin nodded: “You wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for them.”  
“Yes. Hongbin…?”  
Hongbin looked up, and found Jaehwan staring right at him: “Thank you for waiting, I’m sorry I was so late.”  
“You’re forgiven.” Hongbin grinned.

Jaehwan took a few steps forward, closing the distance between them, and Hongbin’s breath caught.  
They stared at each other for a few moments, neither of them making the first move.

It was driving Hongbin crazy. Having Jaehwan so close once again was making him eager to touch, to feel, to...  
“Jaehwan,” he finally said, breaking the silence, “are you going to kiss me? Because I really want you to do it right now…”  
Jaehwan grinned and leaned forward, letting out a shaky breath: “Gods, yes…”

The kiss started out slow, simple pecks placed on their lips and at the corners of their mouth and making Hongbin sigh, his hands bunching up in Jaehwan’s shirt as if trying to hold himself up.  
Jaehwan tilted his face to one side, the tip of his tongue lapping at Hongbin’s lips before retreating and then nibbling on them, coaxing a soft sound from Hongbin.

Then Hongbin parted his lips slightly and, this time, both of their tongues touched, sending an electric jolt through their bodies.  
Hongbin moaned and deepened the kiss, his tongue sliding easily between Jaehwan’s lips, who wrapped his arm around Hongbin’s waist, pulling them even closer.  
Jaehwan’s other hand cupped Hongbin’s face as he took control of the kiss, now open-mouthed and hungry.

Hongbin pulled back after a while, breathless, lips red and swollen: “To bed, I need you…” he groaned.  
Jaehwan nodded, and Hongbin took his hand and led him to the small bedroom, stopping only when he reached the bed, sheets still messy from when he had woken up.  
He turned around and faced Jaehwan, unfastening the travelling cape he was still wearing and letting it fall to the ground.

They undressed quickly, without speaking, and Hongbin smiled as he took in Jaehwan’s naked body before climbing onto the bed.  
Jaehwan climbed after him and lay on top of him, leaning down to steal another kiss and pressing his hips into Hongbin’s.

“I love it when you moan in my mouth.” he grinned, moving to kiss Hongbin’s jaw and neck.  
He then kissed his way down his chest and stomach, all the while aware of Hongbin twisting and moving above him, of a drawer being opened and then closed again.

Hongbin pressed the ointment jar into his hand: “Hurry…” he whined, pulling on his arm.  
Jaehwan let himself be pulled up and dropped his head on Hongbin’s shoulder, his body shaking with suppressed laughter: “Still so impatient…”  
“Don’t tease me, I just…”  
“Yeah, I know.”

Jaehwan kissed him softly, then opened the jar and coated his fingers with the slippery salve.  
Hongbin spread his legs wider, his breath catching when he felt Jaehwan’s cold fingers on him, circling him, teasing, and finally pressing into him.

His initial gasp soon turned into a moan as Jaehwan moved his fingers inside him, pushing, pulling out, scissoring them to make Hongbin cry out louder.  
“You’re so tight…” Jaehwan groaned as he pushed a third finger inside Hongbin, kissing his lips and his throat.  
“I hadn’t…” Hongbin trailed off, flushing, but his eyes never left Jaehwan’s face.

Jaehwan smiled broadly, feeling an odd sense of joy at those words: “You didn’t see anyone else?”  
“Of course not, you idiot.” Hongbin replied, his words a bit shaky because Jaehwan kept stretching him as he tried to speak, “Who do you take me for?”

Jaehwan pulled his fingers out and slicked his cock, then moved between Hongbin’s legs, one hand grabbing one of Hongbin’s thighs, the other guiding his cock to his entrance.  
“Again, thank you for waiting for me,” he said, pecking Hongbin’s lips as he slowly pushed inside, “and sorry for making you wait so long.”

They both stilled when Jaehwan was fully sheathed inside Hongbin, their body trembling slightly and getting used once again to the feeling.  
“I missed you.” Jaehwan whispered as he started to move, slow and shallow thrusts that had Hongbin moaning and begging almost immediately.  
“I missed you too… please, Jaehwan…”  
“Please what?”  
“I don’t… I need… please, this is going to kill me…”

Hongbin groaned as Jaehwan chuckled and held Hongbin’s hips still, rolling his hips in a languid, deep movement as he nibbled on Hongbin’s lower lip.  
“You’re such a jerk…” Hongbin growled, sucking Jaehwan’s tongue into his mouth and biting it playfully.

Laughing, Jaehwan snapped his hips forward, hard and unexpectedly.  
“Like this?” he grinned, enjoying how Hongbin’s cock twitched, trapped between their stomachs.  
Hongbin nodded quickly, licking his lips as he pushed back against Jaehwan’s thrusts, moaning loud every time his hips slapped against the back of his thighs.

He wrapped his hand around his stiff cock and stroke it in time with Jaehwan, precome leaking from the head and dripping under his fingers.  
“Come for me, gorgeous.” Jaehwan said, eyes fixed on his lover’s face.

Hongbin closed his eyes and arched his back as he came with a sob, thick white spurts painting his stomach.  
Jaehwan grunted as he felt Hongbin clench around his dick, then pulled out and gave it a few quick strokes before coming as well, hard, his own come mixing with Hongbin’s.

Panting, he lay beside Hongbin, grabbing his chin and turning his head to the side for a slow, sloppy kiss.  
“What now?” he asked, softly.  
“Now,” Hongbin replied as he wiped the come from his body and snuggled up against Jaehwan, “we stay together. We can stay here if you want, or move, I don’t care. If we’re together, anything’s fine.”  
Jaehwan hummed, satisfied, and held him closer, his arm around Hongbin’s waist possessively.

It didn’t take long for Jaehwan to fall asleep, his breath steady and relaxed.  
Hongbin listened to it in silence, the sound soothing and calming, his eyelids getting heavier.

Even if he was dead tired, he didn’t want to sleep, Jaehwan was back with him and he didn’t want to miss a single moment.  
But then Jaehwan shifted in his sleep, slipping his leg between Hongbin’s, and Hongbin remembered that Jaehwan would be there when he’d wake up later.  
No more lonely days. No more waiting.

Hongbin let sleep claim him with a smile on his face.  
He had finally found his place in this world.


End file.
